Pokemon: The Razal Effect
by Yochan13
Summary: Razal is a new trainer. See his journey through Kanto as his story, and that of some friends he makes along the way begins. R & R Please.
1. PreWord

In the region of Kanto, a young man has held off until his 16th birthday to begin his journey to be a Pokemon trainer. He isn't in it to be the best at anything in particular, he just wants to show his parents that money isn't everything in life. His name is Razal, and his journey is now beginning.

Description: (Because I can't fit it in the beginning of the story like I did with the other characters.)

Name: Razal (No last name. He gave it up because of his father kicking him out when he was 8.)

Age: 16

Hair/Eyes: Black hair kept in a spikes and brown eyes. He also wears glasses due to vision problems.

Clothing/Appearance: He wears a silver hooded sweat-shirt with gold and black lines running down the arms. He has black baggy-jeans and work boots on and wears a silvery belt.

A/N: I wrote this as my first attempt at a real story. I wrote it with the aid of my brother who is also the inspiration behind the character Zion. I'm not kidding when I say he is really like that.


	2. Water, Fire, Grass, and Psychic?

We join the new trainer Razal on his way to Prof. Oak to get his starter Pokemon. He already knows what his starter will be because he had been working for Oak from the age of 8 as an assistant to earn it. His parents had kicked him out because they were appalled by the idea their son had. They didn't believe in his ideals of money isn't everything. His mind went back to the day Oak agreed to his request and Razal agreed to repay the favor until he thought it was time for his journey to begin.

_"Hello Prof. Oak. I've been wondering if you thought about what I said before?" the 8 year old Razal said with much curiosity._

_"I have. I think your request is a easily doable one, but I will wait until the day you think your ready to get what you are wanting." Oak replied much to the boys glee._

_"Thanks Prof. I promise I'll do my best to assist you. Oh and I need to ask one more thing if possible. You see, when I told my father I wasn't going to let him fund my journey, he kicked me out of the house. Is it possible for me to stay here at the lab?"_

_"Why that no good money-grubber. If he only thought of something besides money. I'm sure that we can find a room for you to stay in here. My grandson Gary is close to starting his own journey soon so maybe you can stay on the couch until his room opens up"_

_"Thanks Prof., your the best."_

That was the day his life started to have meaning. He was at Oak's lab now and was joined by 3 10 year old kids that were also beginning their journeys. He knew all of them, and really only liked one. That one was Zion. He' a boy that's a little off and has the dream of flooding the world so water Pokemon will rule. Normally this would prevent someone from getting a starter, but Zion was also very easy to distract so no one even believed that his dream was a possibility. The boy had light blue hair, that stayed messy but he wore goggles that kept it out of his face, and deep blue eyes. His clothing usually consisted of shorts and sandals and a blue Hawaiian shirt with Tentacool around its mid-section. On appearance alone, you could tell that he loved water Pokemon.

The second boy was well known to Razal. It was his brother, and the apple of his parents eyes, Ian. He wore only the best suits a kid his age could wear. His jet-black hair was slicked back and he had a smirk that he got every time he came around his brother. You could tell that he obviously had the same ideal as his parents that money did indeed make the world go around.

The last one was Zion's twin sister Sara. She looked quite different then her brother but this was mostly done by her. Her hair was shoulder length and fiery in color. She wore a black jacket over a black shirt and had a black skirt on over a pair of black shorts. She also wore knee-high boots and everything had flames on them. The only sign that she was any relation to Zion was her eyes were the same color, but she would have had to take her dark sunglasses off for you to see that. She appeared to be very anti-water.

"Now that everyone is hear, allow me to wish you all the best of luck with your journey's." Prof. Oak was saying while walking toward them with four small pokeballs in his hand. "I have here each of your starter Pokemon that you requested from those available. I have Squirtle for Zion, Charmander for Sara, Bulbasaur for Ian, and your specific Pokemon Razal. I hope you all become fast friends with your new partners."

When he handed them to the group, the 3 kids released their poke's to check them out. Razal just stared at his pokeball and hoped that when he opened it, the Pokemon he worked so hard for would find him a worthy trainer.

"I'm gonna call you Zurtle buddy, and together we will begin our quest to flood the planet so water Pokemon will rule! MWAHAHAHAHA...lets go get some lemon-drops Zurtle." Zion said this and was out the door with his new partner on top of his head.

"I really hope he learns to calm down some." Prof Oak said with a little worry for Squirtle.

"I'm sure he will be alright. Zion is just a little too hyper-active for his own good." Razal said with no worry at all in his voice.

"I suppose a loser like you would believe in a loser like him." Ian said as he and Sara recalled their poke's.

"One day your going to pay for treating people badly little brother."

"You have no right to call me that! You shamed our family with your silly idea that people and Pokemon are worth more then money. Nothing is more important then money big ex-brother."

Razal began walking toward the door so as to not let his anger get him in trouble, but his brother was quite good at getting under peoples skins.

"So what Poke did you start with? I bet it's a loser just like its trainer."

"No Pokemon is a loser. All have value in their own way."

"Yea, as in how much you can get from selling them. Pokemon are nothing but tools that should be reserved for the elite."

"That does it bro! No one ever has the right to call a living creature 'just a tool'. I challenge you to a match. I'll show you that my partner is exactly that, my partner."

Sara had watched all this with a grin. She liked the way this Ian kid got at people. She could definitely 'use' a 'partner' like him.

Oak lead the 3 to his back-yard so they could have this match. He stood equal distance between them so he could ref the match.

"Alright, this will be a 1-on-1 match with no time limit. I will ref. The winner will be the first to knock-out the opponents Pokemon. Begin" Oak said with Sara standing near him to watch the action.

"Bulbasaur, show your worth!" Ian called as he released the plant Poke onto the field

"OK. Time to show them what partners can do! Let's go Ralts!" Razal stated as he released the little psychic Poke.

The Ralts stood for a moment looking around. Before the battle got under-way, Razal walked over to her and pet it on the head while kneeling. She appeared to respond to his touch and smiled at the human next to her.

"Hi there. I'm Razal and you were given to me as my first Pokemon. I want to ask you to be my partner and join me in a journey to go to the Indigo Plateau. If you don't want to it'll be alright. I'll just wait until you know me better is all."

Maybe it was because he was so nice or because he was so honest with her, but Ralts truly felt that she wanted to be partners with him. She nodded to the trainer and turned to face the waiting opponent.

"That's my partner. All right, it's on." Razal said with his hopes realized, his partner was on his side.

"Enough of this crap." Ian said getting frustrated. "Bulbasaur, Razor Leaf!" The Poke shot out dozens of leaves that went straight for Ralts.

"Ralts use Psychic to return to the sender!" Ralts began to glow and the leaves reversed and headed back with increased speed.

"Use Vine Whip to dodge." Bulbasaur instantly used his vines to side-step out of the way. "Now use Tackle." He began to charge straight at his target.

"Ralts wait until he get really close to you and use Psybeam." She began to charge her shot and released it as soon as Bulbasaur was less then a foot away. The blast sent him across the field, but didn't quite knock him out. "OK, follow up with multiple Teleport to do a Double-Team around him." She began to appear and disappear going in a small circle around Bulbasaur, making it impossible for him to hit the target

"Stop goofing around and use your Vine Whip to trip it up." Bulbasaur's vines shot out to try and trip Ralts. The only flaw was that since she wasn't using Double-Team to do the affect, she could just Teleport right over them.

"Now let's finish this. Teleport behind him and use Psybeam!" Ralts was beginning the attack before he finished. She unleashed a full blast of psychic energy at point-blank range on the unsuspecting Poke. This time when he flew across the field, he didn't get up."

"Bulbasaur is unable to battle, the winner Razal and Ralts." Oak declared holding up a red flag that signified as the winning teams side of the field.

"We did it partner. I knew you would." Razal said while going to his successful Poke. Ralts jumped up into his arms and hugged her trainer.

_"Thanks for the vote of confidence Mr. Razal." Ralts thought. "I know we will become a great team."_

"Was that your thoughts Ralts?" Razal asked with a wondering look on his face. "If so, just call me Razal, or Raz if you like."

_"You can hear my thoughts? That just proves we were meant to be partners Mr. Raza- I mean Raz." _As she thought this, she hugged her trainer even harder, even though it didn't feel any different to Raz because of the size difference.

"You 2 may have won this battle, but that doesn't mean anything." Ian said while recalling Bulbasaur. "I will raise my Poke with the best trainers money can buy. Next time you see me, it'll be as the champ of this region."

Ian and Sara started to leave but were quickly stopped by Oak at the door.

"I almost forgot to give you all your Poke-Dex's. They are you proof as trainers and allow you to enter the gyms to challenge the Gym-Leaders." Oak said while handing them each the small rectangular device. Ian and Sara left promptly after.

"Thanks Prof. Do you want me to take Zion his since he left in such a hurry?" Razal asked before heading out while he still held Ralts in his arms.

"Yes thank you. You may also want to recall your Pokemon to make travel easier. Most prefer to go into their pokeballs."

"Well, why don't we see. Ralts, do you want to go into your ball?"

_"Please no. I want to stay right with you. If you want me to go in tho, I will." She said with so much innocence._

"All right, out it is. I won't make you do something that you don't want to do."

With that Raz and Ralts left Oak and headed to Zion's house. After that they would head out to begin their journey to face the greatest trainers in the region. Their legend was about to begin.


	3. The Forest and the Flooder

"He already left. Came running through here with a Squirtle on his head, grabbed his stuff, and then headed to Viridian. I hope this calms him down some, though I can't help but admire his spirit. He's just like his mother." The man in the business suit talking to them had to be Zion's dad. He was the only man Raz had ever seen that always wore a suit. Always.

"Well, thanks for giving us a lead. We'll try and catch-up to him." Raz said as he turned and started running up the road with Ralts in his arms. They decided that it best for Raz to carry her since she couldn't run fast enough to keep up and if she teleported to keep up, her energy would quickly drain.

_"You know if you need me to, I'll go back into my pokeball so you can run faster." _Ralts said telepathically.

"You kidding?" Raz could feel in his heart that doing something like that would cause Ralts sadness. "I won't ever put you in your ball unless I absolutely had to. Until then, I'll keep carrying you until your fast enough to keep up without my aid."

The way he said those words brought Ralts untold joy. She had never heard of a trainer who held Pokemon so highly. She was truly blessed to have such a partner.

The one downside to being carried was that because she was a younger Pokemon and had used a lot of energy just a short time ago, the motion and her position made here so comfortable, she fell asleep.

_"She must have been tired out from the fight. She did do a move that we made up right on the spot. I don't think we should use it unless necessary from now on." Raz thought while looking at the sleeping poke in his arms._

It didn't take them long to get to Viridian. The city was only about 2 miles from Pallet. Raz began his search by asking Nurse joy at the Poke-Center if she had seen the strange kid while she took a look at and healed Ralts who was awake but still drowsy. When she said she hadn't seen him, he went to ask Officer Jenny.

"From your description, it sounds just like a young boy people saw swimming up the river near here. He was apparently heading to Pewter. He was also shouting something about floods." Jenny said with a few questions to ask Zion if she saw him.

"Yea thats him. He's a little odd but I dont think he would break the law or anything. Thanks for the lead." Raz hoped that he had eased the police-woman's worries.

As he started to head back to the Poke-Center to get Ralts whom he left so she could take a nap, Raz noticed that there was a gym in this town. He thought the closest was the one in Pewter. No one ever said anything about one in Viridian. When he went over to check it out though, he figured out why. The gym apparently closed down often due to the leader being away on business.

_"Talk about selfish. Trainers really depend on gym leaders to be at the gym so we can earn our badges." Raz thought with little liking of the way this gym was being run._

"Your Ralts is up and looking around the center." Joy told Raz when he re-entered. He had picked up some potions and pokeballs after looking at the gym.

"Thanks Joy. Which way did she go?" Raz asked so they could head out and with any luck be half way through the forest before stopping to camp.

"I think I saw her heading to the cafeteria. I told the Chansey that if she came in, to give her something to eat."

"Thanks again. It may be wise if I did the same and got a bite before we head to the forest."

"Just go around the corner and its the first set of doors on your right."

Raz walked around and headed the way Nurse Joy had said. When he got to where he saw the doors, Ralts was standing in front of them. She heard her partner come up behind her and turned to see if they could get something to eat.

_"I wanted to go in, but my Psychic wouldn't turn the knob. Maybe my power is still out." _Ralts told Raz when he got to her. He just smiled and held the door open for her.

"Yea, lets get something in our bellies before we head to the forest. You may have been to hungry to concentrate on opening the door. We should make sure it doesn't happen again. If your ever hungry, just tell me."

_"OK, I'll be sure to let you know next time." _Ralts said with an innocence to her voice.

After eating their fill, Raz put Ralts on his shoulder and they headed out toward the forest. When they entered, they were amazed to see a path that appeared to have flooded recently. The only problem with that is it hadn't rained in 4 days.

"I think we may have found a clue as to which way Zion went. If we stay on this trail, we should come across him." Raz said to his shoulder-perched partner.

_"I asked a Pidgey and he said that Zion was already half way through." _Ralts replied.

"Then we should catch up with him tomorrow. We can take it a lot easier here then when we tried to catch him in Viridian. Maybe we can get another partner while we're at it."

_"Sounds like a plan."_

They walked for a few hours before it got dark. The path Zion had made had also scarred any Pokemon away. After a quick check up a tree, they had determined they were half way and it would be a good time to set up camp. Raz unrolled his sleeping bag and set the one he had for Ralts right beside it. Then he set a fire to cook some of the food he brought from home. That was when Ralts informed him they weren't alone.

_"A Zubat is coming this way, attracted by the smell of food no doubt." _She informed.

"Hmm. We could always use another partner. Ready to take it down?"

_"No problem. I do hold the type advantage here." _Ralts said the last part with a smugness to herself.

"Just remember that type doesn't always matter. I've seen some poison types that took a lot of psychic poke's down. I'm sure we got this though, you are pretty powerful after all." He added the last bit to make sure Ralts's feelings wouldn't be hurt. She was just a child with a raised ego.

_"I know. I still think I'll win based purely on type though. Just watch." _As she said this, Zubat came into view.

"All right then. If you say you can then I'm behind you 100 percent. Psybeam." Raz said boosting his Pokemon's confidence. The beam of psychic energy it released hit Zubat directly and made it start falling to the ground.

"OK. Pokeball time." He hit the button on the small sphere, expanding it's size, and threw it at the poke. Zubat was pulled in as a beam of energy when the ball made contact. When the ball hit the ground, it rolled 1 time before the red light on the front went off indicating the Zubat was caught.

"Looks like Zubat is our new partner." Soon after, he let Zubat out so he could potion it and the 3 could enjoy a nice hot meal. After the meal, Ralts told Raz that Zubat preferred the ball to stay in. He recalled Zubat and after cleaning up, got into his sleeping bag as Ralts did the same.

The next morning, the group resumed the search for Zion. They had made it all the way out of the forest while still following the trail of flooded trench. When they saw Pewter on the horizon, Raz ran to see the place of his soon-to-be-first gym battle.

After checking Zubat into the Poke-Center to be checked out, Raz and Ralts went to the gym to check it out and see if Zion was there. Sure enough, as they rounded a corner...

"What is this Poke-Dex? Sounds as unreal as spoons." Zion spouted off with an older-looking man.

"Zion, do you remember what Oak said about patience?" Raz said walking up to the slightly-crazed looking youth. "Had you not run off yesterday, Oak would have given you your Dex. Lucky for you, I brought it knowing you would be here at some point." as he said this, Raz pulled out the Poke-Dex and handed it over.

"For this, I'll save you and your Pokemon when me and mine flood the world." Zion said this with no hint at humor in it.

"Good to know."

_"Is he serious?" _Ralts asked truly wondering the boys sanity.

_"We aren't really sure all the time." _Raz replied thinking the answer so Zion wouldn't hear.

"OK, here it is. Now face me so I can win your badge." Zion said to the man impatiently.

"I would love to, but the gym leader is actually my son Forrest. He'll be back in a little while so you can ask him to battle you then." The man closed the door to the gym as he said this and left the 2 trainers to themselves.

"Well, I need to battle the leader also, so why don't we go to the center and wait?" Raz asked.

"Very well. I can explain to you my plans for the flood while we wait. Perhaps an outsiders view can help." Zion replied following the other trainer and his poke.

_"Won't only one of you get to challenge the leader today though?" _Ralts asked when they got to the Center.

_"We'll just have to make sure we challenge him first."_

With those thoughts, the 2 partners were already forming plans to get to Forrest first.


	4. Lessons in the Circus and in Evolution

"And that's the reason that spoons are just a worthless product made by silly people. Long live the spork!" Zion told with complete seriousness. "Want a lemon drop?"

"No thanks." Raz didn't know what he could do with this boy so that he could challenge the gym leader first. After hearing all his ranting on flooding the world and how sporks rule all utensils, there was one idea stupid enough to work. "Say Zion, would you mind letting me battle Forrest first?"

"Sur bu I'll ba watshin." He was just barely understandable because he had filled both cheeks with lemon drops.

They decided to have a meal with all their Pokemon. Raz released Zubat and set him a plate of food next to a low branch of a tree. It was just low enough that he could hang upside-down comfortably while he ate. Ralts sat right next to him and enjoyed a plate of human food rather then the normal poke-chow. Zion released his Squirtle and gave it a plate, then he pulled out another poke-ball and released an Eevee.

"Wow, you got an Eevee. That's one of the more rare Pokemon. Where did you catch it?" Raz obviously admired this rare find.

"It was while I was making a creek for Viridian Forest. She came up and hit Zurtle on the head, so he Water-gunned her and I caught her." Zion said this while giving Eevee a tray and poured lemon powder all over his.

"Zurtle? You mean your Squirtle, I remember you calling it that in Oak's lab."

"His name is Zurtle because I don't believe that S is a letter to be used for names and proper stuff. It's just a lazy Z, so Z should get the recognition for working harder."

"_She hates being put in the pokeball. It scares her." _Ralts told Raz as she had just finished talking with the poke.

"Is it kind of like why you don't go in yours?"

"_No. I don't like mine because I want to be able to protect you without having to wait for you to release me." _Raz just smiled back at his partner.

"So your poke can talk to you?" Zion asked already knowing it from the conversation they were having.

"Yea, she talks to me with her psychic abilities. She can only do it if there's a bond with the human though. She said your Eevee told her she doesn't like her ball. You should probably keep her out and with you like how Ralts is out with me."

"That true Eevee?" Zion asked as his poke looked at him. Eevee looked back at him and shook a little as she nodded her head. "Well then I'll let you ride on my head or walk beside me from now on. What about you Zurtle, you wanna stay out of your ball also?"

"_Naw, I like it in there boss. It's quiet and I can form some plans for Operation Flood-Gates." _Zurtle said before getting more food.

"Wait, did you just understand your Zurtle?" Raz asked with an eye-brow raised.

"Yep, I can understand all water Pokemon. Always been able to. My mom can also so I can only guess, is that cake?" Zion said as he lost attention upon seeing the dessert table that had just been set up. In a matter of seconds he had half a cake on his plate. He the proceeded to pour sugar on top of it. "They never make cakes sweet enough anymore."

"I bet your dentist loves it when you visit."

"He does in fact. How did you know?"

"Just a guess." Raz began to figure that this could be where his hyper-activeness stemmed from.

With their bellies full, or at least as full as Raz could let Zion's get, the group went out and headed for the gym. With luck it would be open now. When they got there, A young man was standing out in front of it.

"Are you 2 the ones that bugged my dad this afternoon?" The youth must have been Forrest.

"If I disturbed him, I apologize, but I was just giving my friend here his Poke-Dex that he forgot. Blame him." Raz said moving to the side so Zion was in full view.

"It's not my fault your dad was so grumpy. Maybe he just needed some lemon drops or maybe it was because he's old. I was just trying to get the badge and be on my way." Zion stated defending his actions.

"OLD! I'M NOT OLD! HOW DARE YOU!" Forrest's dad said coming out from the gym. "Son, while I know your the leader here, would you mind if I showed this punk that you don't mess with Flint?"

"That depends, are both of you here for a gym battle?"

"Yep." The 2 said in unison. Both needed to pass this gym to go to Cerulean where the next closest gym was.

"Well then, I'll face the one that didn't disturb you dad, and you take the loud-mouth. Both battles will be for the Boulder Badge and will be 1 on 1 matches with no time limit. You 2 take the gym and We'll go around to the outdoor one." Forrest said as he pointed for Raz to follow him.

"I'll make it up to you when I win son, now let's go inside and have a match." Flint said holding the door open.

"Good luck Zion. I think you will do just fine." Raz said to build the younger boys confidence.

"OK, I hope you win too, but I think you'll lose. See ya when I win." Zion walked through the door before Raz could respond.

"I don't think I'll ever fully understand him Ralts."

"_Yea, it might be good to stop trying. He has a messed-up sense of reality." _She said with a shiver. They just got into position to begin the match.

"Ready to face off newbie? I don't intend to take it easy on you." Forrest was full of confidence.

"Why would you go easy on the one that will beat you? What an odd thing to say. Oh well, let's win this thing Ralts." Raz replied while his partner went to the center of the field giggling.

"Your poke will stop laughing when it gets crushed by Steelix, let's go." He said this as he released the large metal-snake looking Pokemon.

"You can do this Ralts. He may have brawn, but we have brain. Show em we mean business with a Psybeam."

Ralts charged her shot and hit Steelix dead-on in the head. Steelix however just kept looking at his new target. The attack didn't even phase him.

"What happened? I saw it hit him right in the head."

"Well at least you just proved your brain isn't that good. Every one knows that there is no way a fully evolved poke like Steelix could be hurt by a poke that has to evolve twice to be any good. Not even it's second form could hurt Steelix here."

"Your starting bug me. What gives you the right to call Ralts weak. She can and will beat your Steelix. Let's give it our special Double-Tele-Team Ralts, and show him what we're made of." She began the process of teleporting around Steelix at an accelerated rate making it appear as if many of it were circling him.

"Steelix, use Iron Tail to hit the real one. A simple Double-Team wont affect us." As Steelix brought down his tail, Ralts continued the attack by teleporting on to the tail. "How is it doing that?"

"Like I said, we can and will defeat you. Ralts, teleport behind him and use Psychic." She did so and lifted Steelix off the ground. "You ready to apologize for what you said?"

"Why? You just stopped your poke for me. I owe you a thanks. Steelix, use Hyper-Beam and finish this." His poke started charging and released a beam of pure energy that hit just a little off because of the Psychic. Ralts flew across the stage before hitting a boulder. :Told ya that Steelix wouldn't lose to a runt like that. This match is over."

As he went to return Steelix, the pokeball flew from his hand. Ralts was determined not to be out with one blow. Her trainer was depending on her. He had to get the badge to continue, and if she couldn't do it at her current level then...

"Why is Ralts glowing?" Raz asked as his partner was beginning the first part of it evolution. When the light faded, Ralts was no longer there. Instead was her second form, Kirlia. She just looked over at Raz and winked at his dumb-found face.

"_He doesn't stand a ghost of a chance now. This form is 10 times more powerful." _Kirlia said to her trainer.

"You may have more power, but is evolving what you wanted?" Raz asked so she would know it didn't really matter, he believed in her no matter what.

"_I asked myself before I did it, and yes it is. I want to one day become my final form of Gardevoir so we will never lose. Your not upset with me are you?"_

"Why would I be mad? You wanted to do it and you dream of your final form. I'll be right by your side the whole way and we will fulfill that goal together, but first..." His attention was now on the stunned pair of opponents they now had. "Let's use a move I've been thinking about. Read my mind for the details."

In seconds Kirlia was dashing to Steelix and jumped up to his head. She grabbed hold and began to teleport all over the arena. She went every-where she could since her new form didn't get bothered by the porting like Ralts would have. After 5 full minutes of doing this, she stopped and jumped off while spinning to slow her decent to the ground. She didn't really do this for the reason of showmanship, but because she stopped 25 feet in the air. Steelix dropped like a ton of bricks.

"Now the battle is over. You jumped the gun when you said it earlier." As Raz said this, Kirlia put Steelix's ball back in Forrest's hand and turned to leave. She knew it was over since Steelix wasn't consciously thinking anymore, but was sleeping.

While that all happened outside...

"Time to show you how battles are won kid, go Golem." Flint said as he released the giant boulder-like Pokemon.

"Lemon cookies, go Eevee." Zion said while his poke walked on to the field.

"I thought you were insane before, but now you need to be committed. End this quickly Golem, Rollout." Golem pulled his arms, head, and legs in and began rolling right toward the little fox poke.

"Hmm, Eevee use fox-on-the-ball attack." Oddly enough, when he said this, Eevee knew what to do. When Golem got close, it jumped on top of him and began running in one direction to control the motion they were going. "Keep going until you get tired Eevee. Then role him into a wall. I'm gonna take a nap since you got this right."

"Ee vee vee eevee." She replied showing she had this. Zion was true to his word and laid down. He was asleep in seconds and Flint couldn't believe it. Until Eevee got off Golem, he couldn't stop the rolling.

"If I lose this, I may retire. What a way to go." Flint couldn't help but admire this strange kid in the fact that he believed in his poke enough to go to sleep mid-battle. All of a sudden, a bright light came through the windows of the gym, stirring Zion from his sleep.

"What a refreshing nap. I wish I had woke sooner though, 13 minutes is over-doing it." Zion said while looking down on the still rolling Golem. Eevee was getting tired now and began heading toward a wall and jumped of just in time to not be part of the collision. Golem pulled out his arms, legs and fell over passsed-out before he got his head out.

"Your strange kid, but you won fair and square. I present you with the Boulde... where is it?" Flint began pulling out his pockets looking for the badge.

"Oh I got it already. When Golem ran into the wall, I came over and took it since the battle was over. Yay Eevee, champion of the Garden Gnome Destroyers. Only Zurtle out-ranks you, but he has actually destroyed some gnomes. Their evil will no longer bother this...Let's get some cake." When Eevee heard this she ran and jumped up to her trainer. The proposition of cake is a great energizer.

As he walked out the door, Raz and Kirlia were walking to it to see the progress of the other battle. They both held out their badges to show the other.

"You won also, just like I knew you would." Zion said to Raz while petting Eevee.

"You said you thought I would fail." Raz retorted.

"That's not how I remember it, and I'm never wrong so...CAKE!" Zion began running back to the center while Kirlia and Raz watched him

"_He never stops amazing me. I'm sure it will be interesting traveling with him."_

"What do you mean?" Raz wondered.

"_He intends to follow us to observe us to see how we won. It would be nice to have someone with us." _Kirlia said while dance-walking toward the center.

"Why do I get the feeling this is gonna be a long journey?" Raz dropped his shoulders and followed after Kirlia. He has no idea how true his words were.


	5. Dreams of Whips Crying

"Zubat, use Screech." As Raz called out the attack, his partner let out a horrible scream that made the opponent cover it's ears. "Now go for a Bite." Zubat dove for the win.

"Growlithe, wait for it to get close and use Flamethrower." When the trainer called this, her Growlithe nodded and looked at his incoming target. When Zubat was less then 3 feet away, the Flamethrower came out and he was in-gulfed in flames.

"Zubat!" When the flame subsided, Zubat fell to the ground knocked out. Raz let out a sigh and then called out "Zubat, return. You did a great job buddy, we'll get em next time." After returning his poke, he walked over to thank the trainer for a good match. "Your Growlithe is really tough. You've done a fantastic job raising it."

"Thank you. I've worked with him for quite some time. Your Zubat did pretty well also. If you need to get it to a Poke-Center, there's one just about 2 miles up the road. Have fun on your journey." She turned on her heels and headed for Pewter afterward.

"Thanks!" Raz called to her for the advice. "Let's go guys. We should be able to stay at the Center tonight and head into Mt. Moon in the morning." Kirlia got up from her sitting position and started stretching a bit before yawning. Zion was up, kinda. When he saw how Kirlia was walking, he decided to do something other then normal walk also. So when Raz stopped him from giving this path a creek, he walked the entire way on his hands. Next to Raz, Eevee walked the most normal.

_"It would be nice to sleep comfortably in a Center instead of the ground." Kirlia thought to herself._

_"It'll be nice to sleep in a tub of water or a pool again. This place is too dry. When we flood everything, this will be first on the list." Zion thought to himself._

_"Food?" Eevee thought to herself._

_"I wonder what those 3 are so deep in thought about?" Raz wondered to himself. _"OK. Let's head out guys."

They began walking up the road again at a pleasant pace. After they had gone about a mile and a half, they saw the Center but it was smoking. A bunch of Geodude were attacking it for some reason.

"The Center's in trouble! Come on guys!" Raz shouted as he and Kirlia took-off for it. When they got closer, they could see that the doors were blocked by 2 Graveller. That was why none of the trainers inside could help.

"We have to stop them. Kirlia, use Psychic to move one of the Graveller out of the way." Kirlia began to use here powers to move the big rock of a Pokemon. When she got it out of the way, the door it blocked burst open and 3 trainers came out with a Pokemon with each.

They each called to their partners to attack. One was a girl that told her Butterfree to Sleep Powder one group. Another girl had her Staryu Water Gun another. The last was a boy that used his Weepinbell Vine Whip another small group.

"Those 3 got most of them Kirlia, let's get the rest of them. Psyport." Kirlia knew this attack to be their special one. She started teleporting and using Psybeam at the same time. In a matter of seconds she was done with her group and began helping the others with theirs.

"Where's Zion?" Raz said realizing his odd friend wasn't there. "Oh well, I'm sure he'll turn up."

After a few more minutes, all the attackers were knocked out or ran away. The trainers recalled their poke's and Raz joined them inside while they healed their partners. They all left soon though and Raz realized he didn't even get their names. _"Oh well, I may see them later and I can ask then."_

After an hour later Kirlia came out and joined Raz in the waiting room. _"We can get something to eat while we wait for Zubat to heal and Zion to turn up." _

"Sounds good to me. We really haven't had a good meal for the past week while on the path have we?"

_"Maybe we should read up on cooking while we are in Cerulean. It is a nice skill to know when you camp." _She admitted to herself that Raz's soups weren't bad, they had attracted Zubat, but they weren't the most filling of things. It was funny how he even said they weren't the greatest. She had to have the most humble trainer ever.

Zion came into the Center before they had gotten up and ran over to them. "I just got a GREAT water Pokemon! Go water, go water. Wanna see it? It's one of the best ever and I bought it from a guy for just the money I had in my wallet. How lucky was it I had just enough? Maybe he likes cake. I'm gonna release him and see. Come out Magicarp!" Zion was ecstatic about his new poke. Raz and Kirlia however saw the flopping pile or red and fell over laughing.

"Why would you buy a Magicarp? While I do believe any Pokemon can be great, I do have a few that it's hard for me to believe that with. You now have one of them." Raz said this after him and Kirlia laughed themselves out.

"Don't laugh at him. You'll see, he's one of the best ever. We've already won 5 battles. Now that we have them speechless, CAKE!" Like any other time he yells it, Zion grabbed Magicarp's tail and him and Eevee took off to the cafeteria.

Kirlia just stood there thinking about what she had just heard. As far as she knew, no Magicarp has won one battle. Zion said his had just won 5.Raz also thought along those lines. They looked at each other at the same time and thought the exact same thought. _"What an odd kid."  
_

That night while the group were sleeping, dark forces were at work in Mt. Moon. These were the same forces that threw the Geodude and Graveller into the crazed state that they attacked the Center in.

--

"Keep digging slave!" The harsh voice that said this came from a tough looking man. He was dressed in all black with a big red R on his chest. As he said it, he brought down a whip on a whimpering girl who looked to be around Raz's age.

"Y-yes s-sir." She stumbled over the words because of the pain she was in. She looked like this wasn't the first time he whipped her today. Her sandy skin showed bruises all over and her golden eyes were red from tears shed. Her silvery hair was wet from sweat and half of it covered the right side of her face. She did as she was told and continued digging.

"If you don't hurry and find some of the rare stones in this place, I'll have to go to more extreme forms of punishment. I may even "accidentally" drop your poke-ball down a hole without releasing Gallade. What a terrible fate because your trainer was too stupid to dig a hole and find some measly stones." At hearing this, the girl dug faster. She had to do what she could to keep Gallade safe.

--

_"You don't look so good. Didn't you sleep well?" _Kirlia asked with worry when she saw that Raz looked ill after waking.

"I'm fine. Just had a weird nightmare. Just give me about 5 minutes. You, Zion, and Eevee should get some breakfast. Here, take Zubat with you, I'll be there in a bit." Raz began thinking about his dreams when she left and he was alone. _"What was that all about? I think we need to go through the mountain rather then around it. I don't know what but something is up. Those Geodude wouldn't have attacked like that if they weren't bothered by something first."_

When he joined the others for breakfast, Kirlia noted his worried expression. Zubat also saw this and asked her what was wrong.

"What's wrong? Did something happen to Raz? Is it because I lost the match yesterday?" The questions came out so fast Kirlia had trouble hearing them all.

"No, he just had a bad dream and I guess he's still shaken a bit by it. He was proud of how good you did yesterday. Don't worry too much." She added the last bit to make him feel better. It worked because after she said it, he went back to his food.

Zion and Eevee were too busy digging into the 2 foot high pile of pancakes they had worked on. They had put whip-cream, chocolate shavings, maple syrup, butter, and peanut butter chips all over the entire stack. Neither had even noticed Raz as he sat down next to Kirlia.

_"You should eat something. It may make you feel better." _Raz shook his head to her and simply smiled.

"I'm not that hungry right now. I'll get some cereal bars before we go though. I think we should go through the mountain and see if we can find what spooked the Geodude." After hearing this, Zion finally looked up at his travel compatriot.

"Sounds like fun. I can give the mountain a-"

"Your not giving it a creek or river or waterfall or anything else. It would upset the order of things." Raz cut him off before his suggestion could finish."

"Fine. But won't us entering to find what bothered them be upsetting things?" Zion sounded out of character to say something like this. Raz saw it that way too.

"Most of the time you sound crazy Zion, but that was an actual point. I am surprised. We are still going through and your not adding anything to it, but I am still surprised."

"It's probably because I have a 180 IQ. I took the test and mom said I got the same as her and-CAKES!" With that he ran off to get more pancakes without finishing.

_"That answers so many questions about him." _Kirlia noted before eating her eggs.

"So he is so smart he's insane. Why not." Raz could honestly see this. How else had this crazy boy managed to answer every question him and Oak had ever asked. "I'm gonna go for a walk around the Center. You guys come find me when we're ready."

_"OK. I can join you if you want. I'm done anyways." _She hoped he would accept. She was really worried now.

"I'll be fine. Just meet me outside with Zubat and Zion. I won't go far out." He walked away as he said this. Kirlia wondered what he had dreamed about.

_"Maybe I'm just being paranoid. It was just a dream. I could have sworn it was real though." Raz reflected on the dream he had the night before. It was pitch black and he was alone. He kept calling for Kirlia but she never came. That was when he saw the light in the distance. He ran as fast as he could but didn't get any closer. He heard a girl scream and then the sound of a whip-crack. He awoke right after that._

While reflecting, he sat outside facing the mountain entrance. Something was off about it but Raz couldn't see what it was. It looked darker to him somehow. Then he heard that sound again. The whip from his dream, but it was different. This time he heard it as it echoed from the cave. He stood up and stared at the cave.

"Now I think I'm going crazy. Perhaps we should just-" He heard the sound again, and this time a cry followed. He was off instantly knowing he hadn't imagined this sound. He only hoped he reached the one crying in time. He did have the sense to do one rational thing though. _"Kirlia! Please if you can hear me, get Zion and Zubat and come to me. Read my thoughts to guide you. Somethings going on in the mountain."_

She did hear and responded, _"We'll be there as fast as we can."_ She was off getting the group to head off to Raz and whatever had him spooked.

"You must really not care about this poke or you would still be digging for those stones. I guess I'll just have to get rid of this and then I'll teach you to-" A fist in his face cut the cocky ass from finishing. The pokeball fell from his hand and rolled to it's true owner.

"Gallade, w-we need y-y-your h-help." The girl said as she released her partner. He came out and was ready to fight after being held in the ball for the past week. The man had recovered and released an Arbok to do his bidding. Raz decided to let the Pokemon fight while he checked on the girl.

"Are you alright miss? I heard the sound of a whip, did he hit you?" Raz asked frantically checking her for injuries.

"W-who are you?" When she asked this, Kirlia and the other came running in.

"Kirlia, Psychic that Arbok and Zubat go in for a Bite." His partners did so without question and the Arbok was out of it. The man recalled it and backed away from the group.

"You all have no idea what you've done. You'll regret the day you picked a fight with Team Rocket. I'll come back for you little girl. You'll come to us when they turn on you like everyone else does anyways. See you soon." He ran fast away from his assaulter's. The girl he addressed looked at all the faces on her now and, with so much having just happened, passed-out in Raz's arms.

"We should get her back to the Center. Kirlia, can you tell her Gallade what we're doing?"

_"Already on it. We both checked her mind and she'll be alright. She just got over-whelmed. Her name is Kira by the way."_

"Thanks." He carried her toward the Poke-center where hopefully she would wake-up and be able to answer a few things. _"Better let her rest for a bit first." Raz thought about the events and only had one question he wanted answered. "Why did I dream of her and the cave before it happened."_


	6. Kira, the Fool and Fashion Victim

"She'll be fine after some rest. It was a good thing you were there in time to help the poor girl." The Nurse Joy told Raz. The others had gone to eat while he waited for news. While he was happy the girl was alright, he noted an odd worried look on the nurse's face.

"Thanks Nurse Joy. I'm just glad we got there as well." Raz decided that he should let the others know, even though he was sure Kirlia already did. When she left he had started felling an unusual itch-like sensation in the back of his mind.

When he got there, it looked like they weren't even worried as Zion and Eevee chased the dessert tray around while Kirlia and Zubat ate quietly at a table. Raz went and sat with them after grabbing some food. After sitting, Zion and Eevee came over with a bunch of cake they had managed to snag. Kirlia simply looked up as he sat and nodded.

"_Me and Gallade told you everything would be fine." _Kirlia seemed to enjoy being right when her partner worried too much on this issue.

"Didn't matter. I still wanted to make sure she got checked out for the bruises." Raz still had a slightly worried look on his face. Kirlia thought she might have an idea for why, but that was business she didn't want to get in on.

"Well if she's fine then we should go on to Cerulean. I really want to see the gym there. It's supposed to actually be a pool with floating foam things to stand on." Zion was almost in the floating at the thought of the famous water gym. Zurtle came out at the mention of it and seemed as high on the thoughts of the gym as Zion.

"Actually, I think I'm gonna wait for Kira to wake up just to make sure every things alright." Zion and Zurtle fell like a ton of bricks at this. "You can go on if you want though. We can always meet up there."

"Hmmm, it would mean we get to see the greatest of all gyms first. OK, see ya there." Right after saying this, Zion grabbed his two partners and rushed out the door.

_"What an odd boy. Why do we travel with him again?" _Kirlia asked Raz as she took a bite of a dumpling.

"Because it beats the boredom to have someone like him along. Besides, he started following us after you defied his odds, so in the end, it is all your fault he follows us." Raz said with a smile to show he was just joking with her. She seemed to pay no mind to it, except for throwing his food at him with Psychic until he ran out. Other then that, no mind at all.

"_Guess I shouldn't do that again. Oh well. I have more important things to worry about right now." As Raz thought this, his mind went back to the previous night when he dreamed about the girl he saved the next day. "I would have gone on with Zion if not for the dream. How did I have a dream like that?"_

"Oh Mr. Razal, the girl is awake. She seems to be alright if not a little confused and nervous. I thought it best for her to meet the person that saved her so you can go in whenever your ready." The Joy said as Raz rounded the corner into the main lobby. He nodded and headed the way to the room he had sat next to for news about this Kira girl. While he would answer any questions she had, he had some he needed answered as well.

When he opened the door, he saw her sitting with her back against the head of the bed. Her silvery hair was covering the right side of her face the same way it had when he carried her. The bruises were covered with bandages and she was wearing some clothes Raz had borrowed from Zion since his would have been far too big for the tiny body of the girl. She looked up as the door opened and looked surprised by Raz as he entered.

"It's good to see your awake and alright. I was worried when we brought you in after what happened." Raz said as he sat next to the girls bed. He noticed that she leaned a bit away from him when he sat. "I can come back later if you want."

She held up her hand. "N-n-n-no, it's a-a-alright. I j-just haven't meet t-too m-m-many good people i-i-in a while." She stuttered over her words as she tried to ease up in her rescuers presence.

"From the looks of the guy that was with you, I can believe it. It was a good thing we got there when we did. That dirt-bag deserved more then he got for hurting someone. Might I ask how you ended up with someone like that?"

"I was told to follow and obey his every word after they... found and enslaved me. They decided to use Gallade as a control tool. I would have continued doing whatever they said to save him." As she said this, she looked at the pokeball in her hands.

"Well, that explains a few things, but what did he mean by we would turn on you and why would he worry about getting you back?" Raz said this so it didn't sound like something important. He didn't want to over-bear her with questions.

"I don't know." When she answered, a worried look shot across her face that Raz saw and felt guilty about.

"Well at least your safe now. Don't worry either, me and Kirlia will keep you safe. Zion will help also when we meet back up with him. You didn't think we would just leave you to wait here for him to come back did you?" Raz added the last part when she looked up confused at his first few comments.

"It'll be too dangerous for you and your friends if I come with you. Thanks for saving me but I don't think I should come with you." As she said this, Raz just shrugged and sat where he was starring back at her.

"Well it's your choice, but me and Kirlia will just follow you if you don't come with us." When he said this, Kira looked like she was about to argue. "We don't care about the dangers. If I just let you go off alone without making you as safe as possible, it would just eat away and make me feel horrible. So your choices are join us, or lead us."

"You don't know what your talking about! Team Rocket is the most evil group to ever exist and if they come after me, they will destroy everyone in their path to get to me. Your not throwing your life away for some silly girl like me!" Angry and sad tears filled the eye Raz could see as she said this. Part of him wanted to comfort the girl, another part knew what he was about to say was going to cause her to possibly have those tears flow over. All of him regretted her sadness that he knew he had caused.

"Your a fool." As he said this he stood and looked down at the girl who didn't know what to say to this. "You say I can't throw my life away for some silly girl? You say that Team Rocket will destroy me to get to you if they so desire? To the second I say bring it on. I've never turned my back on a challenge. To the first I say you have no idea what your talking about. My life can't be thrown away if I am doing the right thing. If they do come after you and I did die trying to help you, then I die with a fulfilled life. Anyone that dies to defend someone didn't throw their lives away, they lived a full one and did their best." As the tears flowed from her eye, he felt a pang of regret for causing it. Luckily, the last part of his speech would hopefully make up for it. He bent down low to look her in the face on an even level. "So, as I said before, either you join us or we follow you. Either way, we will protect you, just like we would any friend."

Kira looked at his face and his smile and didn't know what to say. He had said they would protect her, even in the face of death. He had also called her a friend even though he didn't know her. The over-flow of emotions caused her to get very confused. She knew it was dangerous for her to get close to these people, but this one guys determination made her wonder if they really could protect her.

"Fine, I'll follow you I guess. I don't seem to have a choice in the matter anyways. I wish you would just listen to my warnings though." She was already working on ways to get away from them while they slept.

"I did listen to them, I'm just not worried about them. You'll see, everything will turn out right." He was already working on ways to keep her from trying to get away when they slept.

"So when do we leave?"

"When your ready. Nurse Joy said your alright but if you want to rest some first it's alright."

"No, I'm ready I guess. It's not like I have anything to bring but Gallade anyways." She started to get up she was saying this.

"Alright, I'll get Kirlia and Zubat then. Meet me in the lobby." He swiftly walked out the door and she just stared at the now empty room. "_Why does he worry so much about a total stranger?"_

They left the center and walked in silence as Kirlia tried to pick-up on Zion's thoughts to see if he was close. Kira just looked down while listening for any sound of the Rocket that she had been assigned to. Raz just looked straight ahead at the setting sun. This would be a fun night as he thought of how he planned to keep the newest member of the group from getting away.

After deciding to set camp, Raz went to get firewood as Kirlia set out their sleeping bags. She noted how it seemed to take him 20 minutes to get a armful when it normally just took 3. He also seemed more cheery then normal.

"So, everyone ready for a nice rest?" Raz asked from his sleeping bag while Kirlia and Kira got into theirs. Kira looked at him and smiled to make him think everything was alright.

"_Why are you so happy?" _Kirlia asked Raz as he smiled back.

"_You'll see."_ With this he rolled over and fell quickly to sleep. Kirlia did the same while pondering what he meant.

After 30 minutes, Kira decided to make a break for it and left the camp. She felt it the best for these people that didn't understand what they were getting into.

"This is why I was so cheery last night Kirlia. I knew she would try this. You know it would have been easier to sleep in the bag right?" He asked Kira this as he let down the net she had tripped into after walking 10 yards from the camp site. She looked at him with a mixed feeling of anger and happiness. She was mad he foiled her escape attempt, but he had done it out of care and friendship. She would be more careful the next night.

"_How did you set up a net?" _Kirlia asked while she fought to not laugh at the girl.

"Zion taught me a few things about traps. Not that I wanted to know, but it did come in useful." Raz answered as he smiled at his partner.

"_That reminds me, I got a thought from him this morning. I told Zurtle to tell him to wait up." _

"Good deal. We can meet up for breakfast." After he finished getting their stuff repacked, the group went in the direction Kirlia led them in. Kira had decided to try and make Raz feel bad by not talking to him. What she didn't realize was that Raz didn't care. He would keep it up until she just accepted it.

After a quarter of a mile, the group smelled a delicious aroma coming from up ahead. As they got closer, they discovered that the smell was Zion cooking. When they came in on the camp however, they didn't know what to do as Zion just stared wide-eyed at Kira.

"Oh my cake. You are simply unable to do anything dressed like that. I'm gonna need some professional help." As he said this, he pulled out a tiny blue cell-phone and hit a button on it. "Mom, we have an emergency. The guy I'm with, Raz, saved this girl Kira, but she is a fashion disaster. Yea, we are right outside Cerulean. OK. OK. See you in 3."

While the other 3 looked at him, they heard a terrible roar from the distance. Raz expected who it was. Mrs. Hightide was known to be as eccentric, if not more so, then Zion. She was also known for riding her Gyarados to get around. She jumped off her ride as she got to the camp and looked with the same eyes her son had just had at the girl before her. She herself was wearing a bright blue sun-dress and sandals. Her shoulder-length hair was the same shade of blue that Zion's was.

"I see why you called sweety. This poor girl may have been saved from peril, but now we must save her from her own fashion. No girl should be caught in boys clothes that are a size too big. I will spare no expense to make her look as good as I can. To Cerulean!" Her and Zion both grabbed Kira and took off down the road on Gyarados toward the city.

"_I don't think I can call just him odd anymore. What an odd family." _Kirlia said as she walked in the direction they had just went.

"Indeed." Raz walked right beside her as they went to find their friends and their next challenge.

--

A/N: Alright, I know it's been a bit and I'm sorry about that. I'm gonna try and update at least twice a week because me and my partner are working with a lot of ideas in our heads. If we don't make the 2 a week goal then I just ask you to be patient. And thanks for the reviews whether good or bad. They really help motivate me to make the readers happy so...Thanks )

Another A/N: Now Zion does have a reason for how he reacts to Kira's clothes at the end. He'll get a lot more time in the next chapter as well as some more revealed about him and his mom.

Final A/N: My partner also brought it to my attention that Zion has 3 Pokemon while the main character, Raz, has only 2. While I don't mind this, it did bring a good oppertunity for some interactivity. Leave your answers in your reviews if possible or e-mail it to me.

What should Raz get as his next Poke?

A) Houndoom

B) Gloom

C) Vaporeon

D) Lanturn

You can also suggest an alternative, but please select one of these with your own so that I may see how it curbs.


	7. What's Cake?

"What a peaceful day." Officer Jenny was resting next to the police station. "No thefts, no poke-napping, not even a disturbance of the peace. Days like this are what I work fo-" She cut off when a thundering sound was coming. It took her a few moments of looking to see what it was.

"You know where the store is Gyarados. We must help this poor thing out." Mrs. Hightide yelled from the back of her favorite partner with her son and a girl along side her.

"For the sake of fashion we must not let her be seen." As Zion said this, he threw a blanket over Kira to hide her from the public eye.

"Good thinking hunny."

"Of course it was. I see the store. Should we slow down?" Zion asked his mother as she shook her head.

"No time, we haven't a second to spare." As she said this, they burst threw causing everyone inside to flee. Well almost everyone. One girl didn't even acknowledge they even entered.

"Mrs. Hightide, how many times do we have to tell you not to scare our customers like that?" The tiny clerk behind the desk asked the small party as they jumped off Gyarados.

"I may listen one day. Tell you what, I'll stop when someone buys the store from me. Now we have work to do so Gyarados, return. I'll take her to the dressing rooms, you get some outfits for her."

Zion was off before his mom said the word and was already grabbing things that went together in his mind. While he moved like lightning getting clothes, Mrs. Hightide had just got Kira out of the blanket in the dressing room. She started feeling sorry for the girl soon after however. Kira was obviously scared from the look on her face. It began bringing out the motherly side of her.

"I'm sorry if we went too fast for you on the way here. From the way my son talked, I thought he knew you but I think I may have been wrong. Perhaps you know Raz a little better. I hope he was OK walking. Anyways, I should introduce myself. My name is Nami Hightide. And you are?"

"M-m-my name i-is K-k-kira." The scaredness made her tumble over most of her words. This made the motherly side of Nami want out even more. She decided to be careful not to scare her anymore however.

"Kira, what a lovely name. So how do you know Raz? He's such a nice boy. Always helpful and polite. He once saw Zion painting our fence after losing a bet to his sister, and helped him finish without being asked. While that may not seem like much, our fence is over a mile long." She said this while looking through some of the stuff that Zion had set near the door.

"W-w-well, he kinda s-saved me from a mean man. He also saved my friend Gallade. When I tried to leave, he wouldn't let me because of what the man said. Thats how I met him." She said this with a bit of annoyance in the last part.

"Sounds about right. OH look at this, it would be perfect on you. Take off those clothes and I'll help you try it on." She held up a black shirt with gold trim and a pair of black shorts that had a gold skirt attached to it.

"T-t-t-thats ok. I'm sure I can try it o-o-on w-w-w-without any h-h-help." Nami noticed that the girls eyes got wide at the idea of someone seeing her without being fully clothed. She had a mission however and had to help her get the clothes on even if she actually didn't need the help. Plus she was too curious now as to why she would be so shy around a mother.

"Nonsense, here I'll help you." She grabbed Kira's shirt and began taking it off her. After it was off however, she understood things a bit more clearly. "Oh my. Hmmm. One second dear." She went out the door only to come back a few seconds later. "Alright, I sent Zion away to get some cake. He really is easy to distract. Now I think you should tell me what happened to you when you were with the ones that did this."

--

Raz was just entering the city tossing a poke-ball in the air and catching it. "guess the walk was worth it huh Kirlia. We did get a new partner." He looked down at his partner who was happily dance-walking beside him.

"_It was a tough one to get also. I hate having a disadvantage in type when in battle." _She was apparently happy because she had won against the new poke.

"Well you did great in my opinion." His poke danced even more happily at the compliment. They noticed then that there was some commotion happening up ahead of them. They decided it might be worth checking and headed for a large group gathering. When there, they recognized one voice from behind the wall of people.

"I did not walk into you, you walked into me. You even made me drop my cake. No crime is worse. I demand an apology." Zion said in a sad but also angry voice.

"Please, you weren't even watching where you were going. If anything you owe me an apology." The girl standing across from his said in an annoyed tone. Raz decided it might be best to try and get Zion out of this as quickly as possible. He began cutting through the people to get to him. After a good moment he broke through and headed to Zion.

"Sup man. What are you so agitated about?" Raz tried to act like he hadn't heard anything.

"This mean little girl made me drop cake. CAKE! Why would someone be so mean?" Zion looked to his partner for support. Eevee looked up at Kirlia with the same hurt expression.

"It is bad to lose food I suppose. How bout I get you another piece? Any kind you want." He hoped this would appease him enough to calm the tempers down.

"That would be great!! I just want an apology from her first." When he added the last part, Raz saw his moment of getting out of this fly away like a Fearow.

"Your crazy if you think I'm apologizing to somebody that wines about some dessert they dropped. Just go with your loser friend there and get some more so you can leave me alone." Raz looked up at that and stopped tossing the poke-ball. He looked over at Zion and just nodded. Zion understood automatically and looked at the offensive girl.

"My name is Zion Hightide. I am going to be the greatest water Pokemon trainer ever and eventually flood the world. You just insulted me and my best-friend Raz. I now challenge you to a battle. If I win, you have to apologize, unless your scared of a battle that is." Zion looked at her with fierce determination in his eyes.

"Fine, you want a match, you got one. I'll make sure the name Rayne Kasia is forever in your mind as the worst betting you ever received." She pulled out a poke-ball and got ready for the battle. The crowd expanded as they got ready for a show. Officer Jenny went to the middle of the little match area they were in.

"Well it **was** peaceful. At least your having it right in a battle area. I'll judge for you. This will be a 1 on 1 match with a 15 minute time limit." She moved out of the way signaling the battle could begin.

"Plenty of time, go Zurtle!" Zion released his starter and it took its stance.

"What a pain this is. Go Aron." With that she released the tiny ladybug looking poke. "We took down the Sensational Sisters 3 on 1 yesterday. No reason to even break a sweet on this one." Aron looked at her opponent and got set for the match.

Officer Jenny looked at both parties and raised a flag in each hand. "Begin." The 2 were instantly in motion.

"Withdraw and use Water-Gun Zurtle." Zurtle went straight into his shell and soon after, began pumping water out to propel it toward Aron.

"Aron, jump int the air and then use a Rollout to hit it right on top." Aron jumped just in time and rolled into a ball that began spinning and came down hard right on top of Zurtle. He was winded from the blow, but not hurt since he was inside his shell.

"Zurtle, use bubble in the air then repeat the Withdraw-Gun combo." Zurtle began putting bubbles up into the air until it was covered and then went into his shell just before propelling himself forward again.

"Hmm, well if thats how you wanna do it, Aron Rollout straight into him." Her partner did so and to everyones surprise, she knocked Zurtle into the air landing him on his back. "Too easy now. Just jump and Rollout to finish it." Aron leaped high into the air and began to spin so fast she began to glow.

"_I know its wrong, but she did insult us. Can you use Psychic to move him and make it look like he did it?" Raz thought-talked to Kirlia next to him._

"_Sorry, but I can't. She deserves it for calling you a loser, but I think it would bother Zion if he won like __that." _Lucky for them, Zurtle had rolled to get out of the way on his own.

"_Eh, I suppose. Sorry for asking you to do it in the first place. Let's head out and find Kira and Mrs. Hightide." _With that the 2 turned and walked away from the battle.

"Zurtle, nice dodge. Now use Water-Gun while her Aron is still next to you." He did so and hit it point-blank. This shot Aron across the field. It was hurt now, but still wanting to fight. "Now use Bubble-Beam to finish it." As he started filling his mouth with air, Aron stood up only to fall over. She was apparently more hurt then they knew. Zion saw this and felt bad for the little thing. "Stop the attack."

Zurtle stopped and looked up at his trainer wondering why they weren't finishing the battle off now that the opponent was weak.

"Good job Zurtle. I'll get you some good cake for it." He returned his partner before looking at his opponent. "I forfeit. You win." With that he turned and headed to where he saw Raz at. It didn't take long for the crowd to separate, most of them wondering why he gave up the win. Rayne too wondered this.

"_Maybe I'll ask him one day." _She then returned Aron and headed to the Poke-Center before she headed out.

--

"So, where are Kira and your mom?" Zion had just caught up to Raz and Kirlia.

"They're at that store, but my mom sent me out for some reason. I think she said to meet at a restaurant she owns." Zion took off after that to find one. Raz started to chuckle at what Zion had said.

"_Why is that so funny?" _Kirlia asked when the laughter confused her.

"The Hightide family owns just about every store and restaurant in Cerulean. Point to any place and almost every time, they will own it." He decided that While Zion ran all over, they could sit on a bench near the store and wait for the girls. He sat and pulled out a harmonica and began playing a quiet tune. Kirlia was in front of him while dancing to the sound.

"So that's why I'm this way." Kira was finished talking as Nami helped her with a few last modifications to the outfit they picked out. They kept the shirt and shorts with skirt combo, but added some elbow length black fingerless gloves and some black boots that would do well with the hiking around they would be doing.

"Well, I'm happy that Raz and Zion came when they did. You'll be safe with them dear. Don't worry about their safety. Zion is very smart even though he acts how he does. That's why I brought him shopping and taught him all about clothes when he was growing up. It was a good outlet for some of his energy. He even got Raz the outfit he wears all the time. Silver and gold always look good together, don't you think?" Nami held out a giant mirror at that and Kira could hardly recognize herself. The outfit made her look a lot better and hid her healing bruises well.

"I don't know what to say." Kira had tears in her visible eye that had reached a tipping point from the kindness of this woman and the recounting of her past. Nami just grabbed her and hugged as only a mother can.

"It's nothing that you don't deserve. All I ask is that you stay with the boys. Them and their Pokemon will protect you from harm." Kira looked up at her and nodded. She couldn't seem to find a way to say no to this kind woman. "Now let's go find those 2 and get something to eat. I could go for some ravioli or some fried chicken."

"What's ravioli and chicken?" Nami was shocked at this and didn't know what to say. "All we I was ever given to eat was water and rice." If she looked shocked before, now her face was ablaze with fury.

"This is something I will not stand for. When we are done today, not only will you look fabulous, but you will have a taste of life if you know what I mean." Nami grabbed Kira by the arm and flew from the shop. Raz saw the approach him but continued playing to finish the last part of the song. Kirlia finished her dance at the same point.

"Hi Mrs. Highti-" Raz couldn't finish as Nami and Kira raced right past him and Kirlia. They looked at each other and took off after the 2. Zion saw them and headed their way also. They ran for about 2 blocks before stopping at a small Italian looking restaurant. Raz, Kirlia, and Zion came up just behind them.

"This is one of my favorites." Nami ushered the group in and headed for a spot that no one appeared to be at. The waiters saw her and her party and brought out what she always ordered, everything on the menu. It was when they saw Zion that they brought out all of the dessert tray's also. "Go ahead and get anything you want." She passed some things to Raz who had helped Kirlia into a seat between them.

"What do you want Kirlia?" She looked around a bit and pointed to some dumplings in a soup. "You love these things." He gave her the bowl before getting some chicken ravioli covered in a four cheese sauce for himself. Kira just looked at it all wondering what it all was. Nami saw the girls frustration and handed her a plate with a few different things on it.

"CAKE!! WE NEED MORE CAKE OVER HERE PLEASE!!" Zion's shouting could be heard all the way in the back. When the chef's heard he was in town, they had pre-made as many cakes as possible. They could only hope it would be enough.

"What's cake?" As kira was taking a bite of what looked like what Raz had, Zion looked like she had committed a grave sin.

"You probably shouldn't have asked that near him." Raz said this while holding Zion back with one arm. "You've never had cake?" When he asked her this she shook her head. "That's about to change." As he said this, Zion got loose and piled 5 plates of various cakes in front of her.

"When you finish those I'll get you some more. Be sure to finish them because you know what happens to people that waste cake."

"What happens?" Kira really wondered if something happens.

"I beat them until they finish it." Zion began laughing at this until Raz and his mother slapped him in the back of the head. "I was just joking. No reason to be violent."

"If I was to get violent," Raz said pulling out a pokeball, "I would bring out my new buddy here. He would show you how hot things get when they are violent."

"He has a bit of a dark side ." Kira whispered to Nami as she took a bite of cake. "Blah, too sweet. The white one was better." She pushed the one away and picked up the one she had liked.

"He just likes to get Zion razzled. Get it, "razzled". Anyway, that ones cheesecake. It's my favorite too." Nami smiled as Kira took another bite and looked at the 2 boys.

"_This is quite a dinner. We should do it more often." _Kirlia said to the only one she knew could hear her.

"So this is called dinner?" When Kira said this, both Raz and Kirlia stared at her.

"You can hear Kirlia?" Raz only knew that people could hear the Pokemon if they had a bond, but Kira had joined them only a day ago.

"_What strange company you keep." _Kirlia bit into another dumpling as she made the comment to Raz.

"Heh, you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way." He smiled at Kira as he said this and went back to messing with Zion about his new poke that he wouldn't say the name of. Kira saw this all and knew that Nami had spoke true. She could be safe wth this group. Then she took a bite of food and kept trying things she had never even heard of.

--

A/N: Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Remember to please review and thank your waiter on the way out.


	8. Underwater Blitz

"Poor Eevee. Maybe we shouldn't have had 5th servings of everything." Zion was at the waiting desk of the Poke-Center waiting for news about his poke.

"The food was good, but did you really need to eat that much of it? I don't think any cakes were left." Kira asked from a seat next to Nami.

"Yea, that would probably help in the future. Just sit down, I'm sure everything is fine." Raz had been trying with Nami and Kira to calm him for about an hour. "Didn't the nurse say we should just go on and do our gym battle while we waited? That could kill a bit of time. Plus I want to give this puppy a try in battle." Kirlia looked up from her seat next to him when he said this.

"_But won't he have a type disadvantage? Zubat would probably do better." _Raz just smiled at her and shrugged.

"Type isn't everything. I'm sure that together, we can overcome it." He wanted to get the battle on now that Kirlia set the challenge before him. "Besides, I hear the only way to battle the leaders is 1 on 3 or 3 on 3. I figure we have a good chance since Kira has Gallade and Zion can use...whatever he has. Come to think of it, Eevee is out and Zurtle is tired so don't you just have Magicarp left. I suppose 2 on 3 won't be too difficult." Kira seemed to be bothered slightly at the idea of battling. Nami decided to try and boost her moral.

"And I'll be there to cheer for you 3. Not that you'll need any encouragement, your talent alone will give you the advantage." She only hoped that Kira felt a little better.

So they decided to leave all but the poke's they would use. Even Kirlia stayed so she could get some sleep and keep Eevee company. Raz was in full readiness, Zion was looking at his ball that held who he would use, and Kira looked like she was about to have a panic-attack. She was truly hoping the gym would be closed since it was getting dark out. When they got there however, the lights were on and the doors open. Her heart dropped.

As they entered, the giant room looked empty. Only a giant pool in the middle and the stands around it made it look like a battle arena. When they got to the challenge area, all the lights went out with the exception of a spotlight that was shining on the opposite end. It was lighting up a platform in the pool with a curtain around it. After a short moment, the area they were on, along with that with the curtain, began moving so they were actually on the pool.

"Challengers, prepare for a battle like no other." The voice of some woman came over the speakers. The curtain around the other end began to rise revealing 3 young women in swimsuits with various Pokemon-like tails. These had to be none other then the Sensational Sisters of Cerulean. They were the 4 prettiest girls in Cerulean. They were actually minus one however. Apparently their youngest sister was gone.

"We are the Sensational Sisters, leaders of this gym and soon to be victors of this match." A different one said into a microphone she was wearing.

"So even if there are 3 of you," The last sister said also wearing one.

"You can't beat the best trio-team ever!" They all proclaimed to cheers from the stands. Somehow the town knew they would be here. Raz had an idea of how when he looked over at a smiling Nami.

"Well that was interesting. Now, if you don't mind, we would like a battle." Raz and Zion had there pokeballs raised ready to begin.

"That's right. This match will show you something too Raz, don't poke fun at my partners. Go Gya-" Zion stopped when he heard a splash. Him and Raz looked next to them and saw that Kira had passed out and feel into the pool. Raz reached quickly for her but pulled his had back as soon as it touched the water.

"Why is the pool electrified?" He looked over at the sisters who had worried expressions. They apparently didn't do it. "Hell with it." He jumped in ignoring the tingles of electricity running through him. Zion jumped in soon after to try and help. They reached her quickly and started pulling her out. This was made all the more difficult because the electricity seemed stronger around her then the rest of the pool. Raz did his best to ignore it but it was too much for Zion who backed away from them. When they got to the surface, Raz pulled her to the side where Nami was. An ambulance was already there waiting to get her.

Raz got out after helping get Kira safely out. Zion stayed in for a minute. "The electricity is gone." Zion looked around the pool to see if he could find the source and where it had gone.

They were at the center in no time and Kira was taken to the ER. Raz denied treatment and stayed in the waiting room with Nami. Zion had stayed in the pool with permission from the sisters so he could look for faulty wires in the lights and such. Mostly he just wanted to swim.

"She'll be alright. The nurses know what they are doing." Nami tried to be convincing, but her foot tapping in aggravation didn't help.

"I shouldn't have made her go in the first place. Her past with most Pokemon battles were probably seen as bad things. I swear if I see that guy again I'll..." Raz was visibly peeved now. Nami didn't know at what though, Team Rocket or himself. Lucky for her, Nurse Joy came out soon after he said this and was smiling at them.

"She's fine. She just got a little too panicky about something and passed out. You did good to pull her out of the water as quickly as you did." Raz felt a surge of relief. "You can go in and see her when you wish." He was up and through the doors instantly.

"_Why do I feel so bad about this? If she had told us no to begin with, it wouldn't have happened. But if I really believe that, why do I want to apologize so badly?" Raz thought this while walking to Kira's room which was also Eevee's._

"_Because your crazy." Kirlia had been listening in and felt pity for her trainer and his confusion. She was trying to lighten his mood with some pleasant conversation. "It would explain a lot. Your insane so those around you have to be insane. Does that mean I'm insane? Oh the poor Kirlia that was corrupted by a crazy trainer. The sadness people will feel."_

"_Shut-up Kirlia." He was a bit annoyed at it all and Kirlia knew it was wrong._

"_I was just trying to joke with you."_

"_I know, but your not that funny." _He smirked when he got to the room and saw Kirlia getting visibly angry and coming at him. Too bad she was one/forth his size. He just picked her up and spun around making her dizzy. When he set her down, she wobbled all over and fell over. Kira saw this and couldn't hold back a giggle. Kirlia just looked annoyed but not really, and left the room. Raz laughed at it all before he went to sit next to Kira.

"So what happened back there? They say you were panicking, but if that was the case, why didn't you just say you didn't want to battle?" His question through her for a minute. She thought he would be mad, but he was more concerned then anything.

"I thought you said they would only battle 1 on 3 or 3 on 3. I figured that you wouldn't have been able to fight without me. I'm sorry the battle couldn't continue." Raz started laughing when she said this and it only confused her even more.

"You almost drown and you worry about our match. Don't worry so much. Me and Zion will challenge them to a 2 on 3 tomorrow. It would be a good idea if you told us what really bothered you back there."

"Well, it was actually a combination of the idea of battling and being over water. It's not the I'm scared of water, but I just don't like a lot of it around me. The battling has to do with other things." She looked like she was about to cry at whatever this had brought to mind.

"Well, no worries. Like I said, me and Zion will take care of it. As for the battling however, we should get you to where you can battle. If for nothing else but self-defense. I think you need to see not all battling is bad. Sometimes it can be a fun event." He smiled at her and got up. While doing so, one of the Sensational Sisters came running in looking flustered.

"Your friend is like, still in the pool. He won't like come up for air or anything. He's been down there for an hour now." She saw Raz just shrug at it.

"An hour you say. Must be going for a new record. I think his longest is 3 consecutive hours under. He only came up to eat, then he went back in, but never really stayed under like that again." The girls both looked at him in amazement. The sister just turned and left in shock. Kira looked just as shocked but decided maybe some rest would help here get some understanding. Almost on cue Raz turned to her. "Well, I'm gonna go tell Nami everything is alright. You should rest, and no trying to sneak out on us this time."

Kira laid back in the bed and turned to him. "I won't. Nami made me promise not to, and I don't think I could go against her wish. She makes me want to do what she says for some reason."

"It's because she cares for everyone that needs it like they're her own children. If she asked me to do anything, I probable couldn't refuse. Now you get some rest, tomorrow you get to see if me and Zion can work as a team to over-come the odds. It's funny because I have to get over one more obstacle the Zion. Well, night." With that he turned and left Kira to sleep.

--

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the match that almost happened last night. We, the Sensational Sister accept the challenge of these two. Most trios can't beat us, so lets see if this duo can pull a miracle." The sisters were ready on their side. They already had their team out. They were Dewgong, Seadra, and Starmie.

"Yea yea. Let's end this quickly Zion. I didn't get enough sleep." Raz pretended to wipe something out of his eyes.

"Why not play with them a bit first?" Zion was looked like he was already bored of it. "Oh well, go Gyarados." He released the giant dragon-looking serpent. Raz stared at it for a bit. Zion was pleased by this. "Told you not to make fun of my Magicarp."

"Eh, congrats on getting one. He is one of the best water types. Now I guess my new buddy should come out. Let's do it Grim." He threw the ball in the air and out of it came a roar. When the light faded, a Houndoom was standing next to the Gyarados. The crowd erupted with laughter and jeers at the choice he made. Kira just looked at Nami.

"Houndoom is a fire and dark type. The fire part makes him weak to water." Kira looked over at it and wondered why Raz made the choice.

"I knew that would be the reaction. Don't pay attention to them Grim. We'll show em in the first 2 seconds." The ref was in lace then and held up the flags to begin. "Dark Pulse the Starmie." With the speed of a Sneasel he released a wave of dark energy from his mouth and hit the star dead on. It was out like a sack of bricks. "Remember the its also Psychic, making the Pulse more effective, and making the match 2 on 2."

The crowed was speechless. Only 2 voices were still talking. Both Nami and Kira were yelling cheers fo the brilliant move.

"Guess we need to be more careful of these 2. Dewgong, Ice Beam Gyarados." It started charging and shot a beam of cold energy right at him.

"Gyarados, dive under the water." He did so and narrowly dodged the beam.

"Perfect, now we can take one out since the mutt can't swim. Seadra, you and Dewgong dive under and use under-water blitz." When the 2 dived in, they began to charge Gyarados from separate directions. There also seemed to be ore of them.

"Zion, their using Double Team. I can't hit them underwater, but I do have an idea. Use Dragon Rage." Zion looked at Raz and nodded.

Gyarados use Dragon Rage and see what happens." He started whirling around causing a tornado both above and below the water. The copies of the 2 attacker disappeared and the originals were sucked in and began going up. They were stopped just above the surface.

"Alright, hope this works. Grim, jump into the vortex and use Overheat." The dog Pokemon looked at the vortex and dove straight into it. For a second nothing happened. Then the entire tornado above water erupted into flames that engulfed everything in it. When they stopped, both opponents Pokemon were out. Unfortunately, Houndoom was also out from taking the Rage directly. The ref held Raz and Zion's flag up.

"Gyarados is the only one able to battle. Raz and Zion win." The crowd was speechless again. Only Kira, Nami, Eevee, and Kirlia could be heard cheering.

"We lost fair and square. We present you both with the Cascade badge and wish you luck in the future." The sisters handed the 2 their badges and then left to check on their poke's.

--

"Thanks for everything Mrs. Hightide. It was great seeing you again." Raz gave her a hug before turning to put his backpack on.

"See you soon mom." Zion also hugged his mother before running off to get something he forgot. Eevee was close behind him. Kirlia held her hand out and shook Nami's before turning to Raz.

"It really was nice to meet you. I hope we meet again soon." Nami gave Kira a strong hug so that she was close to her ear.

"You can trust them with it when your ready to." She whispered it as low as she could, then released the girl before calling out her Gyarados and flying off. She stopped for a second when in the air though. "See you in Vermilion City." She shouted before flying off in the direction of Pallet.

The group just waved and turned, headed for their next destination, and to begin Kira's training.

--

Z/N: Yay for the second badge. And YAY to everyone for reviewing. YAY!!

;Yochan enters the room; Zion, why are you on my computer.

Zion: Because you weren't here when you needed to right the thank you at the end of the chapter.

Yochan: Right, I hear theres cake in the kitchen.

Zion: CAKE CAKE CAKE... ;runs out the door;


	9. Warm But Confused

"OK Gallade, let's try your Slash attack, I think." His arm-swords were glowing as his trainer called the attack uncertainly. It was the right call however as he hit the Absol he was against at full force. It flew a few feet before landing on it's feet with it's horn glowing.

"Tell him to dodge out of the way before it fully charges its attack." Raz had been coaching her without an opponent all morning before they saw the Absol jump out growling at them.

"A-alright, Gallade, jump up and over him, if you want that is." Raz rolled his eyes as Gallade jumped just in time. The Razor Wind missed him completely and he landed right behind it.

"Now, follow through with it and make it sound more like a command. He's your partner and will respond to your orders because of that."

"Oh, OK. Use Slash Gallade and e-end it." He did so and they hit was enough this time to knock it down to one leg.

"Here, use the pokeball and catch it." He handed her the small sphere and she expanded it. She took aim and threw it as hard as she could. This was a good chance to catch it, but she missed completely. Kirlia saw the miscalculation and used Psychic to change the balls direction. It hit Absol and only rocked twice before signaling the poke was caught.

"Good job for your first catch. Just remember to use more confidence when battling. Your partners will respond to how you feel, so if your nervous, they will do worse then if you believed you would win even against 20 other people." He reached down and picked up the newly caught poke. He looked at it for a second, then handed it to Kira. "Congratulations, you now have an Absol."

"B-but isn't it yours since it was your ball?" She reluctantly took the ball as she said this.

"Nope. You threw it, you caught it, it's yours." He smiled at her to make it more understandable that she did well. She just saw his smile and began feeling weird inside. It was like someone had lit a fire in her and it was just beginning to warm her. "Now, if I smell what I think I smell, Zion is done with lunch. It's really good we found out he can cook so well. My meals aren't really worth the time it takes." He headed toward the camp on the other side of the trees to check.

_"He really is proud of how good you got in only a day. Even though we helped you catch it, that girl is all yours, fair and square." _Kirlia had walked over to Kira while trying to make her feel better. The girl just looked down at the Psychic poke and felt another odd thing. It was like the fire only not exactly. She didn't feel it as strong, it was more of how she felt with Gallade and Nami. Even Zion made her feel this way.

_"Why would Raz make me feel more warm then the others? I wish they had taught us more when enslaved." _She headed toward the camp suddenly realizing she was hungry too. Gallade and Kirlia stayed farther back talking about some things.

_"So, what do you think?" Gallade asked walking slowly with the other poke._

_"Well, all I know is that he feels a similar warmth, but isn't as confused as her. This is going to get a lot more complicated, should be fun." She smiled at her cohort while devising some sort of plan only they could see in their heads._

--

"This is great! Why didn't you say you could cook when you were eating my crappy meals?" Raz had wondered this since they discovered Zion was a great cook on the day after Kira joined him.

"You never asked if I could." Zion's simplistic reason threw Raz and everyone else for a second. Well, except Eevee, Zurtle and Gyarados. They kept eating without pause for the conversation.

"Alright, do you have any other skills we should know about?" Raz looked at Kira as she asked what he was about to.

"Well, let's list what you already know. I'm a good cook, I can speak to water Pokemon and understand them instantly rather then having to build a relationship, and I can, shall we say hold, my breath underwater for a really long time." Raz looked up at the last part. He had known Zion could do it but.

"Why would we call it anything else other then holding your breath for a long time?" Zion looked amused at the question. He just shrugged though and went to eating his food, which was actually a bowl of his stew covered with a half-pond of sugar.

"Oh, and I'm a genius. How you got along the first day without my brain power is beyo-CAKE!!" He cut himself off when Raz held up a snack cake he had for when Zion started talking with more intellect then needed. Kira saw him move the small wrapped cake out of Zion's reach each time he lunged for it and she let out a giggle.

The rest of lunch passed with talking about their trip to Vermilion, which was still 2 days away. They had enough supplies to last 5 days so it shouldn't be a problem there. Plus, they could probably get in a few practice battles to be ready for Lt. Surge. He was said to be one of the meanest gym leaders in the region.

"I still don't know who to use. All mine have such a weakness to that place. I would use Eevee, but Zurtle still hasn't got into a gym battle. At least you can pick easier, as long you don't use Zubat, the battle should be yours." Zion already figured he should use Eevee when it came right down to it. It was the smart choice and he seemed to be doing that a lot more frequently. His mind then saw him act as his sister always did. "That's it, Zurtle, your gonna be ready to take that electric loser down. I won't be like my sister and think only in type's." Raz smiled as he said that.

"That's what I think also. You said it yourself, as long as I don't use Zubat. So guess who I intend to use?" Kirlia looked at him and seemed to disapprove of his choice. He just looked at her and sighed. "I know you want to win every badge for me, but the others need to be able to try also. Tell you what, the next 2 after Surge are yours." He hoped his little friend liked the deal.

_"Who are the 2 after him?" _At least she was intrigued by the offer.

"It should be Erika who uses Plant, and Koga who uses Poison, and I think I heard his is a double gym now that he leads with his daughter, but I don't know for sure."

_"No deal. I want to fight Sabrina also. I've read thoughts of a lot of Pokemon that dread her Kadabra and Gengar. I have to prove whose the strongest Psychic in the region." _She looked dead set to only accept that battle to make her happy.

"Alright. I was gonna use you there anyways. She is a Psychic Pokemon master, so why not use the best Psychic ever." He smirked at the reaction Kirlia had at hearing the complement. It really didn't take a lot to make her confidence boost like a rocket. She was standing with the most determined look she had ever had.

"Well, I hope you win them all. Both of you." Kira had the feeling this was the right thing to say, even though she didn't have the experience to know. From her traveling companions reactions of smiling at her, it was the right thing to say. She was beginning to get more relaxed with them, despite still fearing for their safety. _"Maybe Nami was right. Maybe these 2 would respond differently. I just don't think I can do it yet. One day I will though, one day."_

"Hey, earth to Kira." Zion was waving his hand in front of her face. "I said do you want to try my special super-duper-ultra-sour lemon drops. I made the recipe myself."

"Uh, sure. What is sour exactly?" Her lack of knowledge hit the young cook just as hard as it had the first time.

"The greatest flavor ever. Here!" He shoved 3 drops straight into her mouth. It took here a few seconds to react, but as the drops began melting their coating in her mouth, she found out why Raz had said no every time he had been asked.

"Blah, that's horrible. Why would someone put something like that in their mouth?" She had spit the drops out and was chugging her soda to try and kill the sourness.

"What do you mean, these are great." Zion looked at her with his cheeks puffing out from where he had put the whole bag in his mouth. She just stared at him with agitation while Raz and Kirlia laughed at it all.

--

The whole next day, Kira didn't even talk to the others. They had decided to get to just outside of Vermilion before her training continued, but that didn't bother her. She was just thinking about what she had realized the day before.

_"I wish I understood. Why would someone make me feel so different on the inside? These emotions don't make sense. I need help on this. I don't think Kirlia or Absol know enough about it, and I do think a girl would help more. Maybe Zion can help me. He seemed to be a lot like his mother. Maybe I should wait until we are in Vermilion to actually ask her. I'm so confused." _She looked down while trying to sort out things in her head logically, like she had been taught to subconsciously.

_"You also think too loud. Me and Gallade can't even think with how loud you are." _Kirlia was walking backward in front of her just staring up. They looked at each other for a moment before Kirlia stuck her tongue out to show she was just kidding. The girl just smiled at her and picked her up in a hug.

_"It's nice to have someone around that can read this jumbled up mess in my head. Maybe even some of it makes sense to you." _She looked at the poke hoping for some answer to things.

_"Sorry. I haven't felt that way before. I wish I could help more then that but, if its an consolation, it is nice to have a human that will carry me." _The little dancer laughed when she thought about it. Kira also let her mind be happy with the thoughts of this Pokemon instead of her trainer.

"I can take you on in a 2 on 2 fight anytime, and with any partner you pick out for me!" A female up ahead of the group shouted. As they approached, Raz and Zion recognized the girl the voice belonged to.

"Fine you little dork, we pick that kid with the Eevee on his head." The couple pointed behind her to the group as they made their appearance. She saw the boy and seemed to smile at their choice.

"Excuse me." She ran to the group as the couple stayed put. "I remember you from the other day. You forfeited the match so you wouldn't hurt my Aron. I never did thank you for that, or apologize for my behavior. I really am sorry for making you drop your cake." Raz nodded at her but Zion looked at her like an experiment.

"Who are you, and what did you do with the mean girl that this body belongs to?" Zion had backed away as the girl looked like she was annoyed by what he had said.

"Listen, I am sorry, but I need to ask a favor. Those 2 want to challenge me to a double-battle, and they pointed to you to be my partner. So will you please help me?" She looked at the boy with big eyes, trying to look as innocent as possible.

He looked at her trying to find a way out of it. "I guess." He didn't find one. "But you owe me all the cake I can eat if we win."

"Deal!" With that she grabbed his arm and dragged him to the field across from the other group. Raz just thought about the deal this girl just made.

"She has no idea what she just agreed to." The third human of the group looked at him wondering his meaning. "If I ever made a deal like that with Zion, I would throw the match. No one can have enough money on them to pay for that much cake."

Kira stared for a moment longer thinking things that had been on her mind all day. _"I really need to talk to someone."_ Then she looked to the field as the match was about to start.

Raz moved to the center of the field to check the rules so he could ref for the match. "OK, this will be a double-battle with one Pokemon each and no time limit." He moved to the side so the match could begin.

"Alright, let's show her what we mean by saying no duo can beat us hun." The male of the 2 strangers said to his girlfriend it appeared. "Go Nidorino."

At the same time, his partner threw a ball up. "Go Nidorina." When their partners were released, they looked over at their opponents. "Nothing works better then a couple in battle."

"You say that now, but we'll show you soon enough." She pulled out a ball and looked at Zion with a smile. This actually startled the boy by the difference in her from before. Now he was convinced to looking to see if she was a different person with the same voice, but he hadn't really noticed her clothes or anything before. Now he saw that she was dressed quite well. She wore black boots that worked well with her jeans of the same color. She also had fingerless gloves that were purple and, unlike Kira's, came only to the wrist. She was also wearing a purple shirt under a blue leather jacket that went well with her purple eyes and hair that she had in pigtails. She saw him staring and blushed a little. "What?"

"Nothing, just noticing your clothes. You have almost as good a fashion sense as me." He laughed at the comment while she giggled a little.

"Are we gonna do this today?" The 2 across the field said this at the same time and looked aggravated.

"In a hurry to lose? Fine with me, go Shinx." The tiny electric kitten came out with sparks coming off it's entire body.

"Go Zurtle, time for a warm up." His partner came out and stared down the Nido's with as much ability as he could.

"Begin!" Raz yelled when all were released. Instantly the Nido's began charging toward their opponents.

"Zurtle, use Water-Gun on Nidorina." He released a strong burst of water from his mouth and knocked the target off course, but it was obviously a tough one and the attack did little damage. "Wow, we may have some trouble here."

"Naw, Shinx use Shock-Wave." The cat unleashed a blast of electricity that hovered just above the ground in a cone shape toward the opposing Pokemon.

"Heh, this isn't even a match dear. Nidorino, use Fissure and take them out." He stomped the ground and, at first, did nothing. A short second later a crack in the earth opened up and headed toward his opponents while also stopping the Shock-Wave.

"Zurtle, Water-Gun the ground to avoid the attack!" The turtle did so, and landed on the other side of the huge hole that the crack had turned into. Shinx wasn't as lucky.

"No, Shinx!" The poke had caught the full force and was knocked out instantly. Rayne fell to her knees and returned her partner to it's ball.

Zurtle looked at it just before it returned and got angry for the poor thing. _"It was just a baby, and they used such an attack! HOW DARE THEY! I'll avenge you little partner." _As Zurtle vowed this, and Zion looked at him with fear of his anger, the turtle began to glow.

"He's evolving to win for Shinx." Zion saw his partner was evolving out of determination to help his new friend he had only just met. When the glowing had stopped, Wartortle had taken the place of the Squirtle that had just been there. Kira watched in aw from next to Raz and Kirlia who she had moved next to when they battle had began. They were all amazed by the evolution actually.

"Alright, let's get revenge for your little buddy Zurtle. Use Whirlpool." The poke started spinning on his tail while water was coming out of his mouth and was forming in a tornado of water around him. When fully charged, the water began glowing. "Now take care of these 2." The tornado responded to the command and began chasing the opponents around. It caught up to Nidorino first and pulled him into the water while it continued chasing Nidorina. She might have gotten away, if not for running toward the hole her partner had made earlier. When she stopped, the whirl was close enough to pull her in with Nidorino.

"OK, end the whirl." The pool died down and threw the 2 Pokemon form it at an incredible speed. They landed with a big thud and didn't get up or even attempt it. Raz held up his arm that was on Zion and Rayne's side.

"The Nido's are unable to battle, Rayne and Zion are the winners." The couple returned their partners and walked off in a huff. Zion ran out to Zurtle and hugged his newly evolved buddy.

"Great job, no way will we lose to Surge. I'm gonna fix you the best meal ever buddy, with a big cake for dessert." The turtle appeared elated by the idea of food and started jumping up and down happily. Rayne just looked at the 2 of them and smiled.

_"He must be a great trainer for his Pokemon to have outdid mine twice. Next time I'll show him how good mine really are. I will be champion of this league." Rayne's thoughts went to a vision of her holding the Indigo League Championship._

"Hello, Rayne. I said do you want to join us for a victory dinner?" Zion was in front of her knelling down since she was still on her knees.

"That would be nice. You think you could make pie instead? It is the greatest dessert in the world." Zion stared at her as if she had sinned against Arceus.

"You mean second greatest, cake will always be the best." This time she stared at him with the same look.

"Cake has nothing on pie. Pie is truly the greatest." She stood and tried to stare the boy down.

"Cake."

"Pie."

"Cake!"

"Pie!"

The 2 continued all the way to camp. Kirlia went after them with Eevee and Zurtle to make sure it didn't turn ugly. Raz just smiled and held out his hand to help Kira get up from her sitting position. She took it, all the while thinking, _"Why is the warmth hotter when I touch his hand? I am so confused." _

_--_

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and all the others. Thanks for the reviews and all the OC's sent in so far. Bye.

;Yochan gets up and starts walking out of the room;

Kirlia: Wait wait wait. You just made it clear that Kira has feelings for Raz. Don't you think you should say more to the readers?

Yochan: Nope, bye. ;Leaves;

Kirlia: ;Sigh; What an odd author. Oh well, hope you all enjoyed and the next chapter is in the works. Bye.


	10. Vermilion City Part 1:What's Love?

"How could you possibly think cake is better then pie? Pie is perfect cause it can be taken anywhere." Rayne was still trying to win the argument even though everyone had already eaten and was getting ready for bed. Zion wasn't helping since he was also trying to win also.

"Cake can be taken anywhere also, and it tastes richer then any pie. Pie is just a dessert that anyone can make. Cake on the other hand, requires a level of skill to create perfectly." The girl stared at him in a way that could only be called a confused glare. Raz, Kirlia, Kira, and even Eevee were already in their sleeping bags. All 4 laughed at the 2 as their argument kept going even though both had made enough points for it to be a draw.

_"Should we stop this?" _Kirlia looked at Kira and Raz for any ideas on the situation. Eevee was already out at this point, and Kira just shook her head not knowing how to help with something like this. Raz just rolled over after shrugging.

"If I know people, watch what happens in a second from what Zion sai-" Before he finished they heard a large thud after something was struck by some type of metal. When Kira and Kirlia looked up, they saw Zion on the ground and Rayne over him with the offending pan. "He'll be fine in the morning, probably wont remember anything about tonight." The ladies looked over for answers but he was already asleep.

"How did he know?" Kira kept her gaze on the boy as his breathing had slowed to a restful state.

_"Like he said, he knows people. Most are easy for him to read." _Kirlia looked at her and then closed her eyes for sleep. Kira just looked at the 2 partners with a little giggle escaping her.

_"Those 2 are good partners. It's almost like he's psychic also." While she was sure her thoughts were private, the girl couldn't help notice Kirlia shake a little as she thought them. _It wasn't long after that Kira let sleep take her. Tomorrow was shaping up to be a long day.

--

The walk to Vermilion was an unusually quiet one. Rayne was whistling to herself, Kirlia was on Raz's shoulder while Raz walked while trying not to Burst into laughter at Zion who was holding the back of his head. Eevee was walking beside him wondering how her trainer had gotten the bump he was holding. Kira was just examining how everyone was acting, particularly how Raz was acting, but she was doing that subconsciously and without realizing it.

"Ladies and Zion, Vermilion City, dead ahead." Raz had his arms out as if he were presenting the city to them. Kirlia had copied his motion from the top of his head. The rest just stared because, even though it was morning and the sun was high enough to light everything, this city still seemed to glow.

"It's so pretty." Kira's visible eye was wide with amazement. The "City Presenters" saw this and backed from the rest of the group toward her.

"It's because they have so much electricity built up. A lot of electric Pokemon come here. Most seem to want to be caught and trained by gym trainers so they can see Surge. I might look around for some since I won't be battling until tomorrow. Today we can see the city." The other 2 gym trainers looked at him in amazement.

"I intend to battle as soon as we go to the Poke-Center. I want to head on out as soon as possible." Rayne had her look of determination on. Zion also looked ready to fight.

"I'm gonna go there as soon as possible also. It's time that water showed electricity whose the boss." One of his pokeballs burst open and Zurtle let out a cry.

_"You said it boss, let's go and get through at the center fast so I can take down those electric punks." _He had the same pose as his trainer and Eevee joined them in looking as intimidating as possible.

"Alright. You 2 enjoy your battles then, I still intend to wait. So will you be joining me through the city Kira and Kirlia?"

"Sure. Maybe we'll run into Nami also. She said she would meet us here." She was looking forward to reuniting with her motherly figure so she could ask her some things.

"Yes, I did say that didn't I." Everyone but Raz and Zion seemed surprised as Mrs. Hightide came out of nowhere and was standing behind them. "You must be a new member to their little group, my name is Nami Hightide. Zion there is my son." She held her hand out to Rayne who had a look of shock on her face.

"Your **THE **Nami Hightide? It is a great honor to meet you mam, my name is Rayne Kasia. I've read all your books on how to raise Pokemon and how to battle with more then brawn like most men do." The girl was in aw of her idol who was standing in front of her. Zion decided, however, that they would be late if they dawdled too much.

"Come on, you can idolize her later. We have matches to win and towns to flood." He was dragging the girl behind him as they made their way toward the town with Zurtle and Eevee following closely.

"So how have you been dear? I see your face has lightened since last we met." Her compliment made Kira blush slightly. She wasn't used to compliments of any kind.

"It's been fun. I even caught a Pokemon with Raz's help." She released Absol from her ball and let her meet Nami. The poke looked up at the woman who was holding her hand out for her to sniff. After sensing no danger she licked the out-stretched hand and rubbed her head against it.

"That's great. I figured Raz could and would teach you how to battle a little. My son is far too absent minded to teach anyone anything. Speaking of my son reminds me that I'm hungry, either of you care to join me?" She looked at each of them for answers.

"I would love to. I need to talk to you about...something anyways." Nami noticed how the girl seemed to edit what she was saying for some reason.

"I'm fine, but I think Kirlia would like to join you." He looked up at his partner who nodded then jumped off his head and landed gracefully before moving over to the ladies. "I'm gonna look for some new partners, I'll find you if I do find something." The girls started walking toward the city when he went down a path to a wooded area.

"So what would you like to try today? We can do French, Mexican, or I know a nice Japanese place with some great sushi." Nami looked over to Kira whose eyes still followed Raz down his path. The older woman looked down at Kirlia with a raised eyebrow, to witch she nodded after reading her thoughts. _"Isn't that so sweet. This must be what she wants to talk about and why she edited when he was with us. OH, I dreamed of the day I could pass on motherly advice about something like this. Too bad my daughter didn't really want to be involved with any of my talks to her. Oh well, I got a semi-daughter to pass it onto now. I CAN"T WAIT ANYMORE!"_

Kira had jut turned when she was picked up and carried at the same rate she had felt when Nami and Zion "kidnapped" her outside Cerulean. Looking down at the blue scales below here confirmed she was on Gyarados again. Looking in front of her, she saw Kirlia on the serpents head seeming to talk to it. Nami was behind her making sure she wouldn't fall off. They were in the city so fast, they passed Zion and Rayne easily.

"I guess we can do sushi then. I'm fairly certain you haven't had it before." A quick look down told her she was right when the girl shook her head. "I'm sure you'll like it, I mean everyone likes raw fish with rice."

They were at the place in no time at all, though the people on the street did seem to mind the giant Pokemon that pushed it's way past them straight in to an area that was marked off at all times. The waiters didn't seem to mind since they only knew one person that would do such a thing. The group got off and Nami withdrew her Gyarados before handing his ball to a waiting waiter.

"Hand your Pokemon to him and they will go to a special area that is more suitable. It has a pool for Water types and grass and tress cover most of the rest of it." The girl complied handing over Absol's ball but hesitating with Gallade's. "You can have them eat with us if you prefer however."

"I just haven't been away from Gallade in a while. If he could stay that would be fine. Kirlia needs someone to talk top anyways." The littlest member of their group had already claimed a seat and was looking at the menu for something appetizing.

"Of course, no problem at all. Here, we'll sit here and you can talk about whatever is bothering you. They can enjoy themselves over there." Kira nodded and released her partner from his ball. He had already read what was going on and went to sit with his friend. The humans sat at a table a little bit away.

"Okay, now, what's on your mind that you can't talk about with **him**?" Kira looked at the woman with a little bit of surprise at how quickly she knew what was up with her. The older woman just tapped her heart and then her head. "I am a mother, I see what others don't."

"Well, it's just that, how can I put this? When I see him, I feel warmer then when I see anyone else. I don't understand it. Maybe my brains programming is messed up." The girl looked so sad at these words. Nami looked upset by them as well, but understood things a little better.

"Nothing is wrong with your brain. Your just experiencing the first stages of love is all." The woman had said it so matter-of-factly she didn't notice the girls expression.

"What's love?" This the woman didn't expect to hear. She looked at the girl with more confusion then ever. After the confusion cleared when she remembered something, her heart scrambled for a way to comfort the girl.

_"This is gonna be entertaining." Kirlia mused while her and Gallade watched the scene._

_"Indeed. I do hope that it all comes together nicely though." Gallade was so happy his trainer had found love and was learning what all girls should know and feel._

_"So, what should we have to eat?" The little poke sitting next to him brought his mind back and he looked at the menu she held open. _

_"Might as well try the sushi stuff. They also got some type of dumpling and noodle soup. That would be good too." He knew dumplings were her favorite and the mention of them had determined what she would get already._

The waiters had come out to take the orders at this point. The 2 Pokemon pointed to the dumpling soup and water when asked what to drink. Nami told them to bring a little of everything so Kira could try a bit of everything. After they left, the woman looked at the girl trying to decide the best way to answer.

"Love is when, it's when you want to be around someone all the time. It's when you hope that anything you do will make them happy. I, for example, love Zion's father and have tried to make his life easier with the money I make. I love Zion and Sara and have tried to give them anything they want. I even grew to love Raz as a son and have tried to help him even though he won't accept anything knowingly. I can honestly say that I also love you as a daughter. That's why I will always be here to help you with anything from Pokemon to what the current, shall we say "problem", is."

Kira could feel emotions she had never felt bubbling over and feeling her with a similar warmth that she got from Raz. Her eye also gave away her feelings as her tears began falling even though she was quite happy. Nami just smiled as she looked at her hands after wiping the tears and wondering why she was crying.

"Your food ladies." The waiters had brought a few dozen trays with all the various foods on them. Kirlia and Gallade were also given their orders.

"Eat now, we can talk more later." With that Nami put a plate down in front of the girl and one in front of herself.

"Alright. I think I understand better already though. I think I love you like a mother, if I knew what it felt like to have one." The woman looked at her and decided on something she had been pondering over since they had separated 3 days earlier. Now her resolve was set as the 4 of them all enjoyed their meals.

_"I'll tell her about it after we eat and walk around for a bit. I only hope she accepts." _

_--_

A/N: Well, that took longer to write then I originally thought. This is only Part 1 of the Vermilion City Adventures. Part 2 will be done soon, so thanks for reviewing, and see you soon.

Zion: Nxt up is my part isn't it. ;jumps with joy;

Yochan: No, next is what Raz is doing during these events, yours is number 3.

Zion:WHAT?! How can you put me and Rayne in last.

Raz:Zion, cake. ;holds out a snack cake while running from the room;

Zion: CAKE!! ;chases Raz;

Yochan: ;sigh; Hope you enjoy the rest of the show when it comes up folks. See ya soon.


	11. Vermilion City Part 2:Bloom and Gloom

"What a great day. There's sure to be a lot of Pokemon about on a day like this." Raz was alone after leaving Nami, Kirlia, and Kira back at the main road. He had come into the wooded area and found a place to sit and think for a bit. He had let Zubat and Grim out of their balls to stretch a little while he took out his harmonica to play. "Hope you 2 like music." With that he began to play.

_"Music always helps clear things. I just wish they weren't so foggy. Should tell her about this, but what if she doesn't feel the same." _Raz was begining to feel the now constant warmth surge event though she wan't around. _"If just thinking about her makes me feel it, then it has to be love, right?" _He let his mind wonder at that and contiued to feel the area with music.

It wasn't too long before other Pokemon began to hear the song and came to investigate. When they saw the human playing, they became wary of him and the 2 poke's with him. Most of them were plant types that came to the music. It sounded sorta like a Grass Whistle, but didn't make them feel sleepy. After about 5 minutes, they decided to come out a little so he would know they were there.

"Well, looks like some music lovers. Did you guys enjoy my tune?" A little Oddish nodded when Raz asked them after noticing the Pokemon coming closer. "Well, then I'll continue for a bit." With that he started again while more Grass Pokemon came to listen. Grim didn't even pay them any mind as he laid down to take a nap. Zubat was hanging from a tree in the shade resting while enjoying the music as well.

After a little bit, the boy had a good size audience of various Grass and Electric types that had joined to listen. While most were just sitting in groups listening, a group of Bellossom had gotten together and were dancing to the tune. This was when Raz saw that one Pokemon was still in the shadows of a tree avoiding detection of the others.

He continued until the song came to a close, then set the instrument down. The Bellossom sat while waiting for him to continue. None of them seemed to follow his gaze at the cloaked poke.

"You can come out here if you want. The music is for everyone to enjoy." He beckoned the shadow to come. The rest of the group looked up and saw what he was talking to. Most didn't seem to care, but some got poised to attack the shadow. After a bit of trying, it did come out enough to be seen.

"Gloom." The tiny poke looked at him after saying it's name. Raz could see a few discolorations on the spots of the flower-bud on it's head that showed it was a female.

"No one will hurt you girl, we're just enjoying music that you seemed to be liking." He sat down and started playing again. Most went back to enjoying the sound, but a few of the plants had left when Gloom sat down near them. The Bellossom didn't go back to dancing either. Instead, they were huddled and talking amongst themselves.

One of the group was noticeably larger and went over to the Gloom. After a few moments, she hit the much smaller poke and sent her flying across the field. Raz got up and caught the little thing just in time.

"Wow, that was harsh. Why did you hit her?" The Bellossom group just laughed at the boy who apparently didn't understand it.

_"Humans just don't get it. Why would girls as beautiful as us be anywhere near that ugly thing. It's a good thing she will never get to evolve into one of us, and will always be ugly." One of the group was saying to the rest as they all giggled at the ugly poke._

_"She also smells bad, don't forget that. That is why no one wants to be near her and all of them want to be around our floral loveliness." The leader had joined the rest at laughing at Gloom._

_"Your all just a bunch of meanies." The Gloom was close to tears at hearing the mean comments._

"Don't cry little one." Raz pulled out a tissue and wiped her eyes of the wetness. "Why do you stay here if they are so mean to you? If you want, you can join me and travel all over. Plus, Grim over there could show them how we protect our own." She looked at the trainer and thought about what he had said. No one had been nice to her since she had evolved into Gloom, and now this human had picked her over even the Bellossom.

She nodded slightly and, as he pulled a ball out, touched it and went inside without even struggling. The balls light faded as soon as she was in. The other Pokemon began clapping at the scene as it was the sweetest they had seen in a long time. The Bellossom, however, got angry and threw Razor Leaves at him. Grim saw this and released just enough flame to burn them all to cinders.

"You think I picked wrong I take it. Well, how about I show you. If I win against your leader, you have to stop picking on others. If you win, I'll let one of you come with me instead." The little cheerleader look-a-likes all smiled as their leader came forward and accepted. "Alright then, let's go Gloom." He threw the newly filled ball up and released his new partner.

_"This will be easy. You couldn't beat us without a trainer, why should you with one." The leader was cocky with her apparent advantage._

_"Because now, I have a reason to beat you. I won't lose to bullies like you again." Gloom had found confidence from how her partner had talked._

"Let's start this, Gloom use Razor Leaf." She nodded and released 6 leaves that flew straight at the opponent, but they were dodged easily by her nimbleness. To counter, she sent some leaves of her own at Gloom, who wasn't as quick about it and caught one to the side of her face.

_"Give up ugly duckling. Shouldn't he have the better of us anyways?" _The leader and the others all laughed as their hated opponent got back up.

_"Heh, he already does have the better of us." _This got the reaction she hoped for as Bellossom got angry and began to charge her. What had gone unnoticed to the charging poke was that Gloom was storing energy in her bud that had been collecting for most of the battle.

"Good job Gloom, now release your Solar Beam." When he said this, his partner released a huge blast of energy that engulfed not just the leader, but all the Bellossom. When the dust cleared, all of them were knocked-out. "I knew you would win, great job girl."

_"Remember this Belly. I won because I had a partner to guide and help me. Maybe from now on, you'll respect your older sister." With those words, she thought back to the day it all started._

_--_

_"See, I told you I was the better of us. I was able to find a Sun Stone to become even more beautiful then you." Belly stuck her tongue out at her sister. "I did find more then just the one I used, maybe I'll give you one if you admit that I'm prettier." Gloom wanted to evolve so badly, she stared at the ground preparing to say the words that would burn her to say._

_"Alright, your prettier then me Belly. You always have been and always will be." Her sister had always been mean to her for looking how she did. Belly was a Gloom for maybe 2 hours before finding a stone to evolve with. "Now will you please give me a stone?" Her sister looked at her with false pity._

_"I would love to, especially after the nice things you said about me, but I gave them all away already. Se you later stinky. Hahaha." As the mean girl walked away, Gloom fell to her knees and began a weeping that wouldn't end. _

_It was soon after this that the other Pokemon that had been her friends stopped coming around her. Belly was ensuring that her sister would always be "ugly" and alone. Not even her parents looked at her quite the same._

_"How did she get them to not like me anymore?" Her thoughts were constantly sad as her life slowly feel apart. "I'll show them all one day. I will evolve and be prettier then she is, then we'll see who gets picked on." _

_That day Gloom began her search for a evolutin stone. While no one came near her and most were violent if she came near, her determination never faulted. Even when she was attacked by her sister and the rest of the Bellossoms. She hoped that one day, her dreams would come true. One day she would become Bellossom._

_--_

_"That life is long gone. I will evolve one day, but I'll never be as malicious as you were. I'll help those around me as long as I can, now and forever." _She turned from her former life altogether and walked up to Raz, Grim, and Zubat who had gathered. After a quick look back, she jumped up into Raz's arms and thanked the trainer by hugging him as tightly as she could for helping her find what she needed. A future outside of this forest.

They all began walking, or flying in Zubat's case, to the city to find the rest of the group. It wasn't long after leaving the woods that they heard a thunderous boom from the city and saw smoke bellowing up. "Zubat, Gloom, return." He pulled 2 of the 3 back into their balls. "Grim, run ahead and find Zion and Rayne, I'll find Kira and Nami." A quick bark and nod and both were off in similar directions, but to different points. They could only hope to get their quickly to help if they could.

_"What was that?" _Raz thought as he sprinted into the city, and toward the smoke.

--

A/N: Part 2 complete. Hope your all enjoying this. Thanks for the reviews and a special thanks to all the OC's sent in. The final part of the Vermilion City Adventures will be coming soon.

Zion: It'smypartnextright? IknowithastobebecauseI'mtheonlyoneleft. ThiswillbethebestonebecauseeveryonewillwanttoreadsinceI'minitand-;gong;

Rayne: Sorry about that, he got into a bag of coffee beans a little bit ago.;drags Zion out while carring a dented frying pan;

Yochan: ;sigh; Hope you enjoyed and all that stuff I already said. Hope you review, bye. ;waves;


	12. Vermilion City Part 3:Gym of Amazement

"Let me go this instant. I have to spend time with the most famous woman to ever raise a Pokemon. I read how she helped develop the transport system, and the whole concept of the healing machines in Poke-Centers." Rayne was still in aw of meeting Nami, which was doing something to Zion that almost nothing else could, it was annoying him.

"Whatever. She's just my mom. Even if she did help me fix a few kinks in "Operation Floodgate", she hasn't battled in a long time. Her advice beyond normal stuff like super-sour-lemon drops or ultra-rich-sweet-chocolate cake is pretty useless." At this point they heard a roaring sound coming up fast. They sidestepped just in time to dodge the ladies on Gyarados. "She can also teach you how to ride Water types if you want'"

Rayne was getting aggravated at this point, which was reverting her temperament back to the way it was when they first met. "Like you know more, cake-boy? I bet you haven't even read her recent materials on how Legendary Pokemon are more common then first thought, they just hide better by turning into human forms. She knows more then your tiny mind could ever know, and since I've read it all, I must be smarter then you."

"Zion had stopped and stared at the suddenly mean Rayne and went over it in his mind. _"Cake,if she, cake, was nice when, cake, she wasn't annoyed, then, cake cakeity cake cake cake, I must have, cake with lemon drops on top, done or said something that, cake, made her the way she was, cake cake cake, when she bumped into me, and cake, in Cerulean. What did I, cake, just say? Something about, cake, my mom or something. What's so, cake for goodness sake, special about her? Hmmm, CAKE YOU STUPID THOUGHTS, THINK ABOUT CAKE. Maybe I should just ask her. Cake?"_

The 2 continued in silence for a bit. Rayne eventually thought about something and it broke her agitation and she looked behind her at the still pondering boy. "Did you notice how Kira looked at Raz when we were walking today?"

"Yea, I saw that." His answer was unusually short, considering.

"Well, why do you think that is?"

"Well, it could be that she likes him. It wouldn't be hard to figure she would feel for him in such a short time of being together. He did save her life, give her a new one, basically, and is currently teaching her how to get over an apparent fear of battles. He even helped her get that Absol yesterday. He was even how she met my mom, and she seems to be more comfortable around her then anyone. My mom is kinda cool in how she can get people to open-up almost instantly. Too bad my sister didn't spend enough time around her to be more like mom." He frowned at some memory he thought of when saying that, but instantly got happy again. "What?"

The girl was staring at the long speech he had just given about things only a highly intelligent person would have caught from observing. "That was probably the smartest thing I've heard from you." He just looked at her questioningly.

"What do you mean, I didn't say anything since you were mean to me a few minutes ago. I figured you wanted me to stay quiet. No matter now though. Come on guys, we got a battle to win." He was off running with Eevee and Zurtle close behind. Rayne was still standing still wondering if she just imagined it all.

_"How did I get mixed up with a nut?" _She managed to start walking again after about a minute.

--

"Thanks for getting them checked out quickly Nurse Joy. I still don't know who I'll use against Surge." Rayne had caught up to Zion in the Poke-Center. He was now in the cafeteria eating. His poke's were already healed and ready, but he decided to wait for her. "I heard that Nami Hightide is in town. Has she been here?"

The nurse looked at the girl and smiled. "No, but if she does, we need to thank her greatly. You know that boy your here with is Zion Hightide, her son? A month before he left to begin his journey, she had all the Centers add bakeries knowing how he was. If not for her, we would probably be surrounded by rubble with him trying to get sweets." The girl couldn't believe what she heard.

"How did she get them ALL to add bakeries?" The nurse just giggled a little at the question.

"Well, she does own them all. If not for her, Poke-Centers would still just be little cabins or buildings all over instead of the high-tech places they are." If Rayne was confused before, she had a look of shear amazement now. Zion was just coming out with his Pokemon behind him, even Gyarados.

"Ready to win? Our stomachs are as close to full as they can get with the little cake this place had. We should drop by a bakery after the gym. My mom owns most of them in Vermilion now I think." He was already heading out the door before noticing his compatriot wasn't with him. "Coming or not?"

After looking back at the girl, he burst into laughter. Her mouth was open and her eyes were wide as they could get. Most of her upper body had gone limp while her lower body stiffened to keep her erect. It took a little while to get her out of the shock she was in. At least enough out of it that she could walk, though Zion had to guide her to make her move. They were at the gym before she had regained all of her senses back.

"Why do you walk if your mom is as loaded as it appears she is?" They were just walking into the place when she was able to ask the question.

"Why would I. If you haven't noticed, I enjoy walking around with Raz. Kira is still too new for me to decide, and Kirlia freaks me out sure, but it's still enjoyable. I don't think I've ever even asked for anything besides the pool to be enlarged. My sister was more to, hey look, the main area is this way." He lead the small group through the halls to where a large, muscular man was standing.

"I am Lt. Surge, and this is where you shall both fall to my might." The man looked like a lieutenant with all the army clothing. "Which of you will be first to fall?"

The 2 humans looked at each other and resolved it the old fashioned way. Of course, Rayne won the rock, paper scissors automatically when Zion tried to say water. "I will." Her voice was surprisingly filled with sweetness. Zion went to a bench behind where she took a spot across from the man.

"Alright, little girl. This is a 1-on-1 match with no timer. It'll be the same with you boy. We will begin when both Pokemon are out. Go Magneton." With a quick toss, the poke was out. To Rayne, it looked like 3 magnets that got too close to each other.

"Alright then, but I think you'll be surprised by my ability. Go Shinx." With a flick, the electric kitten was out. And staring down the 3 eyes of her opponent. "I know you can do this girl, last time was a fluke that won't happen again. Let's go! Use Thunder Fang!"

The little poke took off toward the floating magnets. Surge just smiled when she jumped and tried to sink her electrified fangs into his Magneton. "What you may have not realized, my dear, is that Magneton is also a Steel Pokemon. Your weak attack isn't even bothering it."

"Actually, I did think of that beforehand. Use Discharge." Electricity Shinx had stored released in a burst that engulfed the opponent. When the energy stopped, she looked and saw that nothing had actually happened.

"Nice light show. Wanna see a real Discharge?" The magnet released a burst of it's own while Shinx was still on it. This attack sent the kitten flying, but it landed, nicely on all fours without much damage being done. "Now follow through with a Thunder Bolt." Lightning came out of all 6 magnets on it's body and joined to form a massive beam of electricity.

"Quick, jump and use Iron Tail!" Her partner jumped and her tail started to glow as she came down hard on the Magneton, who was unable to dodge since it was still firing the lightning out. The blow appeared to harm it, but not really enough to keep it down for the count.

"Well, you are a decent trainer after all. I'm sorry to have to do this, but your battle ends now. Magneton, use Static to grab that cat, and then use a full powered Discharge and Explosion combo." As the poke began to build a static charge, Rayne looked at Surge in amazement at his orders.

"Won't Explosion knockout your's also? That's why the league banned it in 1-on-1's."

"It is banned, to all but my Magneton. He's the only Pokemon that can withstand the blast and continue in a fight. Now say night-night to your kitty." With Magneton getting fully charged, Shinx was beginning to be pulled to it. She looked to her trainer for advice on what to do, but Rayne had never heard of the combo and was trying to think of a way herself.

_"Their has to be a way to beat this. Think girl, think. If it has to charge up to use it, and both attacks are charged when it gets Shinx, then when does it charge for the combo? Theirs only one chance for it to, __**THAT'S IT!**__"_ She looked at her partner with a look of complete confidence.

"Shinx, stop struggling and run toward it. Use the pull to launch you past it and then hit it's back with a Take Down. This is your only shot girl, let's win this." The events that followed were in such a blur that even Surge had trouble following. When Shinx turned and rushed Magneton, she used Quick Attack with the build up of speed from Static to shoot past it at an amazing rate. When it stopped and leaped into the air for the final part of the attack, it hit with more force then it normally would, and the jarring of this caused 2 things. One was that the Static was broken and Shinx was able to get away, the second was that the charged up Explosion went off, and the energy from Discharge flowed into it making the blast even more then it could take.

"Well, I'll be. You managed to beat what only a handful of others have. Congratulations little girl, you've won my gym's badge. Return Magneton." After returning his partner, he went over to Rayne with a badge in his hand for her. "Now I guess your next boy?"

"You better believe it. Me and Zurtle are ready to take you to school." Zion stood up and, after high-fiving Rayne got into position with Eevee beside him, and Zurtle out on the field.

"Your going to use a Water Pokemon to fight in an Electric gym? Well, I'm not going any easier on you. Go Raichu. This is my best partner. He's even beaten the champions best in a fight." His partner cheeks began sending out lightning at the thought of that battle so long ago.

"Well, then this shouldn't be a challenge then. Let's see you end me quick so I can go get some cake."

"Alright smart-ass, Raichu, use Volt Tackle." The mouse's body began sending sparks out as he ran at a super-fast speed toward the turtle. Zion didn't even get a chance to call for him to dodge before he was knocked back against a wall. To Surge's amazement however, he got back up and shook it off.

"Nice attack you got their. I wonder if you can hit Zurtle enough times to actually hurt him though?" The Wartortle had already gotten back into position and gave a come-on sign to the opponent.

"I'll show you that he can do it however long it takes. Use Volt Tackle until it drops." The mouse was off again running at his foe.

"Withdraw." That was all Zion said and, just a split-second before he was hit, the turtle was in his shell and flying into the air. Every time he came down, he was knocked back up by the Raichu's constant attack. "You know, I wonder how such a dumb person became a lieutenant." Zion had watched his partner flying for about 2 minutes before he said anything. He seemed amused by the show actually.

"What do you mean runt? I got my position by being the best I could be."

"Well, your best isn't very good. Haven't you wondered why I'm not fighting back? I can tell you why before your chance at winning fades away." The boy seemed very different to Rayne then he normally was. She thought back to earlier when he appeared to forget when he explained the Kira thing to her.

"Shut up you brat. I'll win this in a second when your turtle hits the ground after being hit by the strongest electric type attack."

"And that's how I'll win." Surge looked at the boy confused to his meaning. "How strong is Volt Tackle? You said it's the best attack of Electric, so therefore, what type of damage would it due to the one attacking if his opponent never really got hit by it and the charge kept building?"

All at once Surge got it. The Withdraw kept the electric from getting to it's target, so when Raichu kept attacking, he was building it all up, causing him to be in constant pain. "Nice move kid. Raichu, stop. Discharge the energy until it doesn't hurt. You win kid. I'm getting too old for this." As he contemplated ending his career, his partner released a huge torrent of electric. He returned him and handed Zion the badge.

"Thanks for teaching me something kid. I've never lost to a Water Pokemon before. You'll go far in the league with that head of yours." With a pat on the boys head, Surge left the area to think about what had just happened.

"That was amazing Zion. I've never seen anyone able to win a battle without using a single attack." Rayne was behind him while he danced a jig of victory with Zurtle and Eevee. The festivities were cut soon though.

BOOM!

The ground shook beneath them as a thunderous sound came from somewhere not too far away. In an instant, the 4 were out and running toward where a bellow of smoke was coming. After a bit, they heard a bark from behind them. Zurtle looked under a crowd to see Grim barking for them.

"Something is definitely wrong. Where's Raz Grim?" Rayne looked at the dog who, after hearing he heard her question, took off toward the smoke. The group was right on his tail.

_"Don't let him or the others be hurt. Please let them all be safe. And the cake shops, NOTHING had better of happened to the cake shops."_

_--_

A/N: Whew, 3 chapters in less then 24 hours. I wonder if that's a record. Hope you enjoyed them and Review please.

Zion: What was with me being all smart and stuff in the begining?

Yochan: I needed to explain why I was moving so fast with Kira and her emotions. With nowhere else to turn, I saw a golden oppertunity with you.

Zion: Your saying you used me to explain something. That's just wrong. How dare you. I should-

Yochan: There's cake in the kitchen.

Zion: That won't work everytime. ;Yochan stares at him in waiting; Crap. ;slumps over; I'M COMING CAKE MY DEAR.

Yochan: I do hope things are clearer to those of you that thought I may have been moving too quickly. Anywhomoosles, Next Chapter will be up soon. I need to sleep for a few days first though. Bye ;falls over in his chair;


	13. Boom, & The Crap Hits The Fan

"Prepare for trouble." Raz had just arrived at the scene of the blast. A Rocket member, who looked very similar to the one from Mt. Moon, was on top of a giant Onyx looking robot and was talking into a microphone he was wearing. Next to him was a girl in the same outfit, except that her long green hair was sticking out the back. She too appeared to have a microphone.

"And make it double." Zion and his group had made it to the scene also. Grim had already left them to get to Raz and let him know they were there.

"To protect the world from devastation."

"To unite all people within our nation." Grim was next to Raz now and the 2 were getting a plan ready. Zion and Rayne were also forming a plan to stop them from anything they were doing. Rayne appeared more ready at attacking them then Zion even thought considering that she wasn't with them when they saved Kira.

"Eddy." Both groups had let all their Pokemon out. Raz had Gloom start charging a Solar Beam, and told her not to stop until just before it was to be released. Grim was setting up to use Sunny Day after the speech had ended. Zubat was told to look for the girls and make sure they were safe. On Zion's side, Zurtle and Gyarados were charging their most powerful Water Gun and Hyper Beam attacks. Eevee was sent about the same task as Zubat. Rayne had released all but Shinx since it was still weak from the gym battle. She had her Aron getting ready for a big Rollout. Her other 2 Pokemon hadn't been seen by Zion until now. She also had an Eevee that had joined his to search. Her last was a Wingull that was also charging his Water Gun.

"Brass." All the attacks were ready. They only hoped it would work.

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light." As the man prepared to finish their long-winded monologue, Raz stepped forward.

"I tell you guys what, how about I blast you off faster then light. Grim, Sunny Day." The hound released a ball of light that went high into the air and raised the temperature to an almost uncomfortable level.

"I knew I would see you if we came after the girl. You won't win this time kid." The man who called himself Eddy was visibly angry from the past defeat. "Too bad we already got her, and some other pretties. After your dealt with, this will be the perfect mission."

"You what? Where are Kira and Nami? What did you do with Kirlia?" Raz was almost boiling over with anger. "I will make you tell me where they are."

"Relax darlin'. Your friends are safe for now. Why, just look at the tail of our little toy here if you don't believe me'" Brass had her hand pointing to the part she spoke of. Inside the section of tail she pointed to, Kira was balled up with Nami holding her. Kirlia was in a section beside it with Gallade. Both the Pokemon were asleep.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE POKEMON?" His anger had made everyone around him back away in fear. It was either that, or the fact he was beginning to let off a purplish aura that made them back off.

""He is an angry youth huh? I said your friends were safe, what else do you want? We just put some sleeping medicine in their food. No reason to get so agitated. How about we calm your blood. Go Hypno." The female Rocket threw a ball releasing the Pokemon that looked like a man with a medallion waving back and forth.

"You don't get all the fun hunny. Go Arbok." Eddy released his snake partner and when it saw the boy, it was ready to attack him if commanded.

"I beat you once, I can do it again. Grim, Flamethrower Arbok." The dog jumped in front of his trainer and released a huge wave of fire that engulfed the snake. A red beam pulled it back before any real harm could be done.

"Hypno, put that doggy to sleep with some Hypnosis." The poke started to wave the medallion faster then it had. When Grim's eyes looked at it, they started to droop. Slowly he began falling asleep, and fell down to a laying position. "Now let's end with a full powered Zen Headbutt."

"That's not a good idea." Raz didn't appear too worried with Grim asleep and a strong attack coming at his partner.

"What do you know. Do it Hypno." As the Psychic Pokemon closed in with his head glowing with an aura like the one that was still around Raz, Grim jumped up and over before blasting his opponent with a wave of dark energy. "H-how did he do that?"

"I told you it wasn't a good idea. Even a moron knows that Dark types aren't affected by Psychic attacks. He wasn't even asleep when he feel over, not even tired in the least. Now that both your partners are defeated, let my friends go." The 2 Rockets smirked when he said this and, after recalling Hypno, jumped into the machine.

"We think not. Now, if you'll excuse us." The mech started turning until it caught sight of Zion's group.

"You really shouldn't have done that." Rayne was almost in laughter by something that the 2 didn't get. Zion was fuming on the other hand.

"What, you want to try and stop us too? We shouldn't have caught your little friends?" Eddy was half smiling at the tiny group that now stood against them. To his and Brass's surprise though, Rayne was still smiling.

"Well, yea you shouldn't have done that, but I'm referring to something else. Besides, Raz took care of that one already." As she said this, the 2 heard a small blast that shook their control room. A rear camera showed that Zubat and the Eevee's had broken a hole into the room with Kirlia and Gallade. The Pokemon were starting to get up while Raz and Grim had made a hole in the other part letting Nami and a shaking Kira get out. When the psychics became fully aware, they burst the entire casing and stepped out as well.

"YOU DESTROYED IT! YOU DESTROYED IT AND YOU DON'T CARE!" Zion was yelling about something and the Rockets turned to the boy. He was shaking with an anger that cold have equaled Raz's earlier. Upon closer examination, the Rockets discovered that he was apparently pointing to the cake shop their mech had came up under. "RELEASE YOUR ATTACKS!"

They say when 2 or more powerful energies collide, the result will be an explosion that is the power of both energies doubled. When the 2 Water Gun attacks combined with Hyper Beam, the shock of the attack caused the 50 ton machine to lift high into the air. Aron had an idea during the 30 seconds that it would be air-born, and rolled over to Gloom. She jumped up and rolled into a ball to charge her Rollout. She landed in the bud that held a super-powered Solar Beam.

"Alright Gloom, finish this." As the Onyx machine fell, the power of the beam shot Aron at a speed that, once she hit the mech with her attack, sent it flying so fast that it was impossible to see after 2 seconds. "Good job. Maybe that will keep them from coming back." Raz was holding Kira as he said this, and she glared when he did.

"You don't get it. They won't stop, never." She got out of Nami and his grasps as she filled with anger. "Their will always be someone after me and they will hurt anyone near me. This is why I always go back to them. I can't let someone get hurt on my account." She turned and ran from the group as quickly as she could.

"Wait." Raz had began to follow until Nami caught him. He just stared at her.

"Let her think about things for a little." She was as worried as he was, but sometimes, she thought it important to let people think about things for a bit.

"Well, that was quiet a show Rasputin. What will you do for an encore?" Raz turned knowing only one person that called him by that name. Sitting at a table and sipping on some coffee was Ian. Across from him was Sara who was also drinking something, but it looked more like tea.

"How about I beat you so badly that no amount of money will be enough for how much surgery you'll need to look human again." Now wasn't a good time to see his brother. Normally the brat couldn't get to him, but after what had happened, he needed to vent some frustration. Gloom, Zubat, Grim, return."

Zion and Rayne had joined them after recalling their partners as well. Sara hadn't looked up once during this. Nami was pleased that her daughter was alright it seemed. Her son didn't seem to share the feeling.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite brother. How's the flood plan coming? I can tell you've been working hard with all the water flowing around us. Good going." She knew how to antagonize her brother like no other person. She didn't even look up as she did it. "Did you need mom to hold your hand to get around or something?"

"I came without her, she was just here when we arrived. Too bad you don't have the guts to travel, instead you flirt with a stupid rich brat to get him to bring you. I guess that says whose the better of us finally." Eevee had jumped up on his head during this and was growling at the girl in front of them.

"Wow, what wit you have. Must be fun to be so stupid you get stupid Pokemon to join you. What a loser team you have." She was now staring at the boy as if expecting him to cry.

"Hey, why is your hair so wet on a sunny day like this?" As he said this, Zurtle popped out and sprayed the girl with Water Gun before returning quickly.

"You little piece of sh-"

"Sara Elizabeth Hightide, I don't care if your not home anymore, that language will not be tolerated. Zion, you and your sister hug and make up." The siblings looked at their mother as though she were some crazy lady on the street. "I meant now! That or your both going home and ending your journeys here."

"I'm sorry sis." Zion and Sara had joined in a hug as soon as she spoke their most feared words. When they were close enough though, their conversation carried on in whispers. _"I'll get even in the Pokemon League, if you make it."_

_"Like you will make it. If you do, See you there loser."_ The release of the hug was as fast as the beginning had been, a blur.

"So, have you beaten the gym leader here Rasputin?"

"My name is Raz, and no, I'm battling him tomorrow. Why do you insist on calling me that?"

"Because it's your proper name. Had you gone to schooling for a bit as father had wanted, you would be glad to be called by it." His brother had always called him by that name when he wasn't mad or aggravated to the point he wouldn't remember.

"That was my old name. My proper name, as you put it, is now and forever Razal, but my friends can call me Raz, as always." This was his answer when he told his father and mother of the change after being kicked out. It was his way of showing that he wasn't that bothered and had given up his old life completely.

"Whatever. I simply asked if you had beaten him yet because, me and Sara here already have his and 5 other badges. I understand that you have only 2. How sad to be so far behind me. Oh well, I grow tired of this. Ready to go my dear?" He held his hand out for Sara and bowed like a gentleman. As she got up, the 2 started to head toward a small airport that had recently been made.

"Hey Ian. See you in the League." Raz was staring down his bro as he said this.

"I doubt that slowpoke." With that, the duo were gone. The group had decided to go eat with the exception of Raz. He sat on a bench and began thinking about what had happened today. _"Well, this was a bitter-sweet day I guess. What happened back there Kira? Why were you so mad?" _

"Zubat, go find Kira. Don't let her know your their, but if she gets to far away, come get me." He released the bat who nodded at the instructions and flew off. _"I hope she's ok."_

--

Zubat hadn't traveled far before finding the girl. She was in a park near the city. Her eye was red from crying and her back was to a tree that he could fly to without detection.

_"Well, I guess I can wait here til she heads back to the boss. Wonder what she's thinking." _As Zubat got into position, he heard that she was still crying a little.

"Why can't they understand? If they stay near me, it will only end badly. Maybe I should show them why and they can leave me without caring." As she imagined the events happening, her heart began aching. "I can't let them get hurt. I have to make them want me to go away. I'll find a way for them to want me gone. Then I will be keeping my word to Nami and I won't hurt them myself."

Her mind wondered down a road that she had been down before. The look on their faces as she revealed the rest of her face. The shock and disgust they held for her. Then she remembered another time when those she was with had been beaten by the Rockets and their anger at her for letting them be attacked.

"It has to be this way. This time, I won't go back though. This time when they send me away, I'll end the suffering I cause." With those final words, she got up and headed back into town. Zubat was in shock from it, but didn't know what to do.

_"I don't know if boss should hear about this. He might get angry at her and do what she's wanting him to do and send her away. I hope Kirlia has some answers." _He batted his wings and went through a different route back. He had to get some advice before going to Raz.

--

A/N: Hey, hope you liked. took a while to write because I had a lot to concider when working on it. Hope you see things a little different from past chapters, ;laughs evilly; and please review.

Kirlia: Your a little sick in the head sometimes, you know that.

Yochan: Everyone's a little sick in the head, that's what makes life fun. The fact that we are all somewhat crazy, now let's go walk on hot coals. ;runs out of room dragging Kirlia behind him;


	14. Final Surge of Vermilion

_"And that's all she said,. I don't know what to do." _Zubat had came into the cafe the group, minus Kira and Raz, were at and began almost as soon as he got to Kirlia. No detail was left out.

_"Calm down, I'm sure she didn't mean it that way. She was just upset after what happened. I can talk to her and clear things up." _As she was working to calm the bat poke down, the rest of the group were wondering about what was going on.

"What do you suppose got him so riled up Zion?" Rayne had looked to him since he had been with them longer and might understand a bit better.

"No clue, but I'm certain it has nothing to do with this delicious cake. We need to get the recipe from them." He was too preoccupied to worry. The cake he had just bitten into was all he could think of.

"We already own the shop hun, so the recipe should be in the data-base. I do wonder what is going on though." Nami appeared just as worried as Rayne.

_"But what about boss, should we let him know?" _

_"I don't think it would be good for him to find out just yet. While I still think she was just upset, we should keep an eye on her until we're certain." _Their conversation ended there as night was beginning to creep up and with the day they just had, sleep would be essential to the battle tomorrow.

--

The sun wasn't up yet for the next day. The city was still asleep as she stood on the ledge of the Poke-Center's roof. Her thought were still vivid with the events of the previous day. She saw what would eventually happen if she didn't end it here. Raz and his group would be either dead from her being there, or they would run from what she was. She had to stop either from happening.

"It'll be better when I'm gone. Then they can go back to their lives before finding me." Kira began to walk off the ledge. "Goodbye guys, hope you live happily."

_"You'll have to be there then." _As soon as Kira heard the thoughts, her body began floating back to the roof door, where Kirlia was sitting just out of sight.

"Let me go, I'm too dangerous to be near you all. It can only end badly." The human tried to fight the Psychic hold, but wasn't doing much more then making the Pokemon that held her laugh.

_"You say it will be better without you. You obviously haven't been paying attention to things. Watch and see what I mean. Oh, and I'm going to have to stop you from speaking for a little." _At that, Kirlia stood and hid behind the stairs platform where she wouldn't be seen. Kira, who was trying to talk but couldn't open her mouth, floated behind her with her face in the same direction as her captor.

_"Kirlia, let me go!" _

_"Not yet, just watch and listen. It won't be long now." _As she said it, the door to the roof opened. Raz stepped out already dressed for the day in his usual clothes. He walked over to the ledge where Kira had just been. As soon as he got there, he knelled to one knee and bowed to the sun as it had just burst over the horizon.

"Thank Shaymin for another day, and wish me luck and power in the battle today. Also, I just want to add a thanks for yesterday. I just wish Kira hadn't run off like that. Please give me the wisdom of Mew to understand what's going on. I just hope she's ok. Thanks again, and talk to ya soon."

Raz stayed knelt for a few more seconds before getting up and heading back in. Kirlia came out, with Kira floating behind her. When she turned, tears were poring down the girls face. While being a Pokemon of emotions made her want to comfort the girl, she knew she was doing the right thing.

_"The reason for that was so that you could see what he does when something happens or is coming up that he wants to get ready for. On the first part of our journey, before we met up with you, he hadn't done it. He had no worries about the first gym and decided not to waste Shaymin's time. After we got you though, he did it at the center where you were resting."_

_"Why are you telling me this? I have to stop him from getting hurt. You just don't understand." _Her tears were still streaming as her anguish continued to build. The being unable to move was only making it worse.

_"I understand more then you know. I'm so tired of all this thinking your the only one that gets you. I know what you hide, and it doesn't bother me one bit. I've told you all of this so I could tell you this. After we got to Cerulean and you fainted, he has gotten up before dawn every morning and talked to Shaymin, always asking for understanding and for you to be ok. Your the one who doesn't understand." _With a wave, Kirlia released the human and let her move again.

"Why are you torturing me? I know that it'll be hard, but isn't it better for everyone to be safe then for me to be here." Kira sat with her back against the building the stairs were in and wiped the tears away.

_"I don't think so, and deep down I don't think you do either. I'm sorry though." _As she said it, her mind began working on a new idea that, while she didn't like it, would probably work.

"For what, making me cry? I guess you just thought it would help, even though it was wron-"

_"No. for that, I'm not sorry. You needed that. I'm sorry for what I'm about to do." _With that, a small ball of purple energy floated to the girls head and entered without anything else happening.

"What did you just do?" The human was confused as the energy seemed to have just disappeared.

_"I just made sure I won't have to do this again. That was a Mind Block. I've been working on it for a bit now. It has 2 affects. One will happen anytime you think your better off dead or away then with your friends. The second will happen if you try a stunt like you did this morning. If after a month you still feel this way, I'll remove it. Now, it's time for breakfast, see you there."_

Kira stared at her as she teleported down to the cafeteria. _"What could she have done? I'm sure it's a bluff, and I still think they will be better if I-" _Her mind couldn't finish the thought as she remembered everything that Raz and the others had done for her all at once. Her mind filled with the joy of catching Absol, of meeting Rayne and Nami, of the sour things that Zion had put in her mouth, and finally, of Raz's smile when she cheered for him.

New tears were making their escape as new images came scrolling. She saw her and Raz alone in a park after he won the championship. She saw herself revealing her full face and Raz just holding it and looking at her with eyes full of love. The images stopped as he inched closer to her face.

"Why would she do this to me, I have to end this before that ever happens-" Instantly the scenario played out again, the same way as before. This time when it ended, she took a running leap at the ledge. "Doesn't matter now, it'll be over-"

As she felt the wind blow by, she landed with a thud in the floor of her room. "What the, what just happened?" She looked around for some answer to why she wasn't a pancake on the street. Her mind went back to what Kirlia has said: "_One will happen anytime you think your better off dead or away then with your friends. The second will happen if you try a stunt like you did this morning." _

"Why is my life this horrible mess? Answer me Mew!" She almost shouted at the ceiling for some kind of answer. "What can I do now? If I try and kill myself, I get teleported. If I try and think bad things, I get memories of why I shouldn't be thinking them. What's with the last part of that one though?"

_"I made it so your mind would make you think of what you wanted more then anything else." _The Psychic had been watching the whole time to be sure the block worked. _"I told you I was sorry, but I bet you anything you'll be thanking me when it's all over." _The mind-link went off soon after so she wouldn't hear the thoughts of her death that would soon need to be avoided.

"That answers it all then. Why is my life cursed? I guess I'll have to find a way to get this thing out of my head, and quickly." With that, she got up to head to breakfast, stopping every little bit when the image movie played through again, and again, and again...

Soon, she was back in her room. "Who needs to eat anyways." As she lay on her bed though, a tray of food appeared with a note.

_"Here's some food. Please stop the thoughts soon though cause I can't do this all the time. Love Kirlia."_

"If you really loved me, you would take this thing out of my head." She picked up an apple from the tray just before another note appeared.

"_Nope, I'm doing it **because** we all love you. You'll see."_ She ate while trying to think of a way out of this that Kirlia wouldn't see coming. "This is going to be a long day."

--

"You sure your alright?" Raz was almost ready for his match with Surge. Everyone else was outside waiting, except Kira.

"I'm fine, just not feeling well. I'm just gonna stay here if it's alright." After 4 hours of the visions coming constantly, she was feeling pretty sick.

"If your sure, hope you feel better soon." He let out of sigh and went out to go to the gym. When he got there, everyone looked at him questioningly. Kirlia was the only exception, as she walked over to him.

_"I'll stay here with her and make sure she's fine. Hope you manage a victory, of course, the odds are against you with Zubat. You seem to do well that way though." _She looked up to see if her partner would answer. When all he did was smile and shrug, she teleported away.

"Where did she go, and where is Kira?" Nami appeared worried as Kirlia was Raz's strongest, so only something serious would keep her from a gym match.

"She isn't feeling well. I think yesterday still has here shaken a bit. Kirlia is gonna wait her with her since I told her I was using Zubat against Surge." At the moment of hearing this, Zion, Eevee, and Rayne fell over laughing.

"Who would use a flying type as weak as a Zubat against an Electric Pokemon gym leader? There is no way your winning the badge man." Zion had controlled himself enough to say this before laughing again.

"Says the boy that used a Water type and won. I have faith in Zubat, and that's all that matters." With his head high and belief fully in his partner, Raz began heading toward the gym. The others joined him soon after Nami got them to quit laughing, mostly by threatening to take away all the cake and pie the centers had. From a window on the second floor, Kira was watching as Kirlia teleported in with some food for them to eat.

_"I think we should talk some more." _She threw a pear to the girl, who just nodded and sat on her bed, too tired to argue with the poke.

--

"Who comes to face the lieutenant of electricity?" Surge had his game-face on when Raz and the others entered.

"My name is Razal, and I'm here to challenge you to a gym battle." His voice was full of confidence. He had Zubat's ball in his hand and was waiting for the match to begin.

"Very well, I accept, of course. It will be a 1-on-1 match with no timer. You should also be honored to face me today kid." He had a ball in his hand and was ready to begin also.

"Oh yeah. Why should I be so honored?"

"Because, this is my final match as a gym leader. When this match is over, my replacement will come out and await the next challengers. It's been fun but, I'm ready to retire and finally take it easy. This is it Raichu, our final match running the gym. Let's make it a good one." He threw his ball in the air and released the mouse that Zion had won against the other day.

"Well, I'll have to make this you best match ever then. Let's push them to the limit Zubat." Raz also tossed his ball, and out came his partner with a "scree" coming from it. "Ready when you are sir."

Surge was taken aback from the show of respect his opponent had shown. No one had called him sir in a long time, and now his opponent for his last match was showing it on their first meeting. "You have no idea what saying that means to me kid, but we won't go any easier on ya. Raichu, use Thunder Bolt."

The electric Pokemon's cheeks started to spark as he released a big bolt of electricity at the bat.

"Zubat, drop downward and fly at him with Aerial Ace." His partner dropped just in time and began a speedy flight toward the target. His wing's began glowing as he got faster. Just before he was about to make impact, the Raichu began to spark all over his body.

"That's it, use Volt Tackle to stop the attack." When Zubat hit the static from the Volt Tackle, he flew backwards and just barely managed to not get hit by the full attack afterward.

"You good buddy?" The bat turned to his trainer and nodded with a "scree". "Then let's step our game up. Use Supersonic." Hearing this, he began emitting a high pitched screech that was making the mouse look around in a confused state. While distracted, Zubat began charging for a Wing Attack.

"Raichu, look out behind you!" Surge had yelled at the top of his voice, but Raichu couldn't hear anything but the scree that was still ringing in his ears. Zubat's attack made a full contact hit and sent the mouse flying.

"Great job Zubat, I knew you could do it." The bat was flying around happily as his trainer cheered for and praised him. He didn't see the bolt coming until it was too late. As the electricity flowed through him, he fell to the ground only managing to stay a foot off the ground.

"It ain't over yet. We still got some power left, right Raichu. Let's show them, use a full force attack. You can pick witch one, just use as much as it takes to win this." He had gotten back to a standing position and was beginning to charge a full powered Volt Tackle. Zubat was also recovering from the attack and was just beginning to be able to fly a little higher.

"Zubat, I trust you to do what is best, just like he trusts Raichu. Do whatever you think best." With the confidence of Raz, Zubat began to scree all around to see where everything was at. Raichu was almost fully charged and was beginning his run toward the bat. The electricity had everyone's hair standing, and had Zion poking Rayne and his mother to shock them. This was soon ended when they both slapped him in the back of the head, knocking him out.

_"OK, I've got about 5 seconds to think. I'm so screwed. Wait, that might work." _Zubat began flying away from the oncoming attack and was charging a attack of his own that was making his wings glow. _"If this doesn't work, I won't be able to try again. Everything has to go into this one shot. Oh Mew, let this work." _

As the two were still going in a circle, Zubat changed directions and headed across the arena, knowing that Raichu had too much momentum to turn like this, and began to curve toward him. When they were 3 yards apart, the bat began spinning in the air. His speed was increased by 10 times and he flew almost straight threw the lightning and hit the mouse dead on. His spinning with the attack still charging his wings had deflected most of the opponents energy, and the power of the spin with the speed of the hit threw him across the room landing on his back. Zubat also feel to the ground, exhausted from the power he had used.

"Well, looks like we almost had a draw. Raichu return. Congratulations, you earned this badge fair and square. You even did what you promised and pushed us to our limit, and beyond. It was truly a match worthy to be called my last." When the 2 were in the middle of the field, Raz once again showed his respect.

"It was indeed a fine match, sir." When he said it, the boy looked him in the eye and stood in salute. The lieutenant did what he had in these type of situations in the past and pinned the badge to the boy's shirt. He saluted the boy back as well.

"At ease, Corporal Razal. I expect you to go all the way with that partner of yours. I can see the makings of greatness in you." With that, Surge walked through the back exit for what he had said would be the final time.

"We did it Zubat. I can't believe that attack you did." He was holding his partner up in the air while praising him for what it did. A few seconds later though, he flew from the boys grasp and flew high into the air with a surge of energy. "You alright Zu-" Zubat had stopped flying and was beginning to glow. "Wow."

--

_"I know your mad at me. I've been feeling it radiate off you until just recently." _The Pokemon had joined the girl on the bed. _"I know that it's against everything for me to be forcing you like this and I am sorry. I understand if you hate me for it. That's why I'm going to remove part of it. I see now what putting those images in your head did to you, so they won't happen anymore."_

"But your still leaving the other part in?" Kira had been laying mostly motionless during the apology from the little psychic. Her body had endured a great deal of strain from the "mind attacks", as she called them.

_"I have to leave that part. I know you find it hard to believe, but I do love you, just like we all do. If I knew you had killed yourself, I would probably go insane." _She laughed a little at what would happen if her mind did snap. _"I'll leave you alone now, and like I said, you may hate me for this, but I do still love you. I mean, your like a sister to me in our big dysfunctional family." _As she was getting up, Kira grabbed the Pokemon's arm.

"Wait. Please." The girl's eyes were pleading and the radiance of mad that Kirlia had felt was replaced. Now she could only see the girl feeling sorry for some reason. "I don't hate you. I just don't know what to do anymore. After the attack yesterday I-" Fresh tears were streaming as she began to think about what could have happened. Kirlia crawled over and held the girl in whatever she could manage with her tiny arms as a hug.

_"I know your worried, but Raz did save both of us yesterday. Have faith in him, he has more power than anyone can see, and he will always use it to help people. Zion's the same, in a way. Even Rayne would stand up to protect someone, as long as she wasn't annoyed with them." _Kira had positioned herself better and held the Pokemon for comfort as her eyes began drooping.

"Please stay with me for a little while Kirlia, I don't want to be alone right now." She feel asleep almost instantly after saying this. The little Dancer nodded and began to drift to sleep also. Even though it was only a little past noon, both girls needed to recharge from all that had happened to them during a day they would never forget.

--

"I've never heard of something like this happening. You have a rare find Raz." Nami was as surprised as the rest by what they had seen. Raz had held himself together the best at what had happened, even though he was still extremely surprised.

"It doesn't mater how rare it is. As long as this is what he wanted to happen, I'm happy for him." Raz was so proud however. _"How could I not be proud of him, I mean, Crobat is one of my favorite Pokemon."_

_--_

A/N: Wow, that was a long chapter for me. Hope you all enjoyed it though. Please leave your reviews with the asisstant at the front as you exit the room.

Kirlia: You've been talking with Zion and his crazy rubbed off on you again, didn't it.

Yochan: Is that what this sparkly stuff is? ;waves hand in front of face while staring at it in amazement;

Kirlia: ;sigh; Come on, time to hose that stuff off before it ingrains itself. This should be a warning for you all: Don't let other people's cray rub onto you. Only let your crazy show and not one from someone else.


	15. A Day of Fun and Eeveelution

"Your not walking with her in this state. I'm giving you a bus to take you to Celadon and that is final." Nami had decided that since Kira hadn't been feeling well, and the group needed to go to Celadon quickly to get to the tournament on time in 2 months, they would use a bus that she had paid for. Her and Raz had been arguing about it all morning.

"We don't need it. If she gets sick or anything, we can stop or I can carry her." He didn't want to accept anything like this since it felt like they were skipping part of the journey. Kira had sat through the whole thing with Kirlia in her arms.

_"Why can't one of them just stop?" _The girl looked down at the poke in her arms. They were still tired from the day before even after sleeping all through most of the day and night.

_"I don't know. Humans just like to be difficult sometimes." _She smiled upward to show she wasn't referring to anyone in particular.

"Listen, why don't you both just-WHOA" Kira had stood up to put her two-cents into the conversation, but fell over after standing. Luckily, Kirlia stopped her from falling and set her back in the chair. This was most likely due to her still being in the human's arms when she was falling. "Thanks."

_"No worries. I still need to make up for some things." _She turned and hugged the girl without thinking. Raz and Nami just stared at them.

"Fine, we'll do it your way. Just this one time though." The boy finally gave in after his side of things kind of died with the fall.

"Thank you. It will be around shortly. I made sure it was big enough for all your Pokemon to be out during the trip. You should be in the city by 3 and then you can look around or do your gym battles. I won't be there unfortunately. I doubt I'll be able to see you in Fuchsia either, but I will be sure to be in Saffron, so until then." The woman bowed and left without another word. When outside she let a thought run across her mind of why she wouldn't be with them till Saffron. _"This tournament is gonna be an interesting one."_

"Well, at least we won't have to walk far." Rayne and Zion had made it as Nami left and had heard the end of everything. Rayne was pleased they didn't have to walk. Zion looked disappointed however.

"I wanted to-" Raz held a hand up before the sentence finished.

"How many times do I have to tell you your not building any rivers for any reason?" The boy sunk down deeper and left the room. Rayne followed while trying to cheer him up.

"You can always flood the bus." That seemed to lighten him up some.

"That's true. Then we could swim the whole way." His visual expression lightened as he went to get his stuff.

"Think you can make it out to the bus or do you need some help?" Raz was next to the remaining girls with his hand reached out. Kira took it, and pulled herself up.

"We can manage, thanks." She headed for the door while Kirlia hoped down, but still followed the girl. When they got outside, they saw what Nami had meant by big enough for the Pokemon to be out. Waiting for them was a giant double-decker bus. The driver was an elderly man with a uniform that seemed to be what most drivers would wear. He just smiled as the girls got on and went to a set of seats toward the middle.

It wasn't long before the rest of the group were aboard and the bus was off. They would be on for close to 4 hours, so the Pokemon were quite pleased to get out and stretch. Gyarados, Wingull, and Crobat were on the top deck where they could move more freely. Grim had gone to a padded area in the back with Shinx following the big dog like a child would follow a parent. He didn't appear bother by it, even when he laid down and the kitten climbed on top of him, curling into a ball before falling asleep herself. The group had watched and laughed a little at the cuteness of it all.

The 2 Eevee's were running circles around Gloom who was trying to catch them. Absol had watched most of the chase before joining Grim and Shinx to nap for the trip. Aron and Zurtle also joined in the napping area. Gallade was up front watching the driver while the man told the Pokemon stories of the old days of training, before pokeballs were what they are today. Kirlia was still sitting with Kira while they listened to the Pokemon playing.

"Gloom!" The plant had jumped for one of the Eevees that had stopped for a fraction of a second, but she had over-jumped and was heading for a bus wall. She had almost hit it before Raz reached out and caught her. Kira turned to see the 2 of them.

"No worries, huh Gloom. You know, I think that they have Sun Stones at the department store. Didn't you say you wanted to evolve using one of those?" She looked up at her trained and nodded cheerfully. This was her dream come true.

"Sun Stones, I got some of those. I got like 3 of every stone in fact." Zion had pulled out his bag and revealed a horde of stones with various markings. It did appear he had a few of each kind.

"How did you get all those?" Kira had remembered that those were exactly what she had been forced to search for in Mt. Moon. The thoughts almost lead down her dark path, until a sudden wave of comfort spread through her. She looked at the poke next to her who just smiled. She smiled back thankfully.

"When I left you and Raz after we saved you. I went into the cave and found all of them. Then I gave it a nice pool so some Pokemon could swim or drink without having to leave." When he finished, Raz looked at him in annoyance that he had gone against what he had been told, while Rayne stared in shock. The shock didn't last long as Zion's Eevee had been staring at the stones for the whole story.

"Eeeeee" Without a warning, she jumped into the bag and touched almost every stone at once. Light began pouring out from the bag in a rainbow of colors. An orange beam hit Gloom while a green one hit Rayne's Eevee. The rest of the Pokemon that were out had ducked for cover to avoid the strange lights. When all the light faded, a few changes were visible.

"Bell?"

"Leafeon?" Both the poke's that were hit with the light had evolved even though they hadn't touched the stones themselves. The bag that Zion's Eevee was in was moving around where he had dropped it, but the poke in it was bigger then she had been. When she came out from under the bag, none of those that saw it could believe their eyes.

She still looked like Eevee, the same colors and everything. The only real change visibly was that she was the same size as Leafeon. Her fur had lessened in fluffiness and instead looked slick like a full grown fox's did. Her face had changed to look more like what the eons did. Other then that, the only thing different was that she had an aura coming off her that was yellow, red, and blue, all three.

"E-eevee?" Zion approached the poke careful not to startle her if she didn't know what had happened. She looked up at him and shook her head however.

_"Nope, I'm not Eevee anymore. I'm Omnivee." _Her word were completely understandable to the boy now.

"Wait, if I can understand you, then your Water now, right? I thought Vaporeon was the only Water Pokemon you could become." He had came over and was petting the strange new poke in-front of him now. She rubbed into the pets as they felt nice on her new fur.

_"I'm am part Water. Actually, I'm part Electric and Fire also. I can feel all three in me." _Zion looked at her and looked like his head was about to explode. He had never dreamed of having the only tri-typed Pokemon. After a few more pets, he noticed that the aura had stopped and she looked like she was just a Eevee that had grown a bit.

"Well, let's see what you can do. How about a Water Gun." She looked at him and let loose a spray of water right at his face. Everyone fell over laughing at the poor boy. He was over-joyed however.

"Maybe you should wait to see what else she can do. We're almost there now." Rayne pointed out the window at the city as they were approaching it. Raz looked out and saw something that made him stand up however.

"This is where I get off though. I need to do something before we enter so, I'll meet you guys at the mall. You want to come Kirlia, or are you still tired?" He had already walked over and was waking Grim. Crobat had flown down to join him also while Bellossom went over to him also.. "Ok, return you three." He looked back at his last partner who just waved for him to go on without her. "See you in a bit.

""Don't we need to-" Before Kira finished, Raz went to the top of the bus and jumped out the back window, landing on the road behind it with no trouble before running back to what he had seen. "Never mind then."

_"He is such a show off." _Kirlia turned and sat back down with that thought.

"Wait, who said that? I don't recognize the voice." Rayne was looking at the equally shocked Zion.

"I've never heard it before. What about you Kira?" She just giggled while Kirlia jumped back up and stared at them.

_"That was me. It's about time you 2 could here me. It's annoying to only be able to talk to a few people, but understand you all."_ Both looked at the psychic and were still wide-eyed at hearing her speak. They were able to shrug off most of the surprise quickly as they entered the city though.

"Alrighty ladies, Pokemon, and Zion. I was told to drop you off anywhere you decided. So where would you like to go?" The bus-driver had a kind voice that showed his love for his work.

"The mall will be fine. They have this giant candy shop that had the best stuff ever, next to cake that is. They also have a neat casino that-" Rayne had grabbed the boy at hearing the word casino.

"Casino! They have a casino? Oh my, my, my." The dollar signs were almost visible the the girls eyes.

"Yeah. You can win all sorts of stuff. They even have Pokemon you can win that were bred for it. Mom thought it would be a good prize so we make sure they agree to do it and are brought up with care from all the workers." Kira didn't even understand most of everything the 2 were talking about. It didn't take long for the bus to stop however.

"One thing before you all go. I was given these card to be given to the girls. Mrs. Hightide said that the young man wearing the silver wouldn't accept one if she had offered, and her son could pay for his stuff himself. These will get you anything you want in the mall free. Food, clothes, games, you see it, you can get it." He handed the cards to them as they got off and began recalling their poke's. Rayne seemed to vanish instantly after getting the card and her Pokemon returned.

"I'm off to the candy store I talked about. See you 2 inside. Later Gramps." Zion went quickly inside and the girls that were left outside looked at the old man that had been their driver. He just winked and got back into the bus before driving off.

_"Well, that was odd. I guess we should just go and see what we can find."_ Kirlia grabbed the humans hand and they proceeded to go into the massive building.

"Yeah. What do you want to look at first?" They were in front of a map that laid out the entire store to them.

_"Since this is your first time at a mall, why not check out some clothe shops. There are quite a few here." _She pointed at a line of them that would eventually lead to where Zion had gone. At the end of the hall they would be down was also the casino so they could also see what Rayne was up to since she seemed so determined to go there.

"I guess it would be nice to try some new stuff out to wear." They went through the stores one at a time, but really didn't find much. Kira didn't really like the look of anything and Kirlia didn't really know human fashion enough to help. By the end of it, she just got 2 outfits that were kinda like what she already had, only in different colors. Where hers was black and gold, one was white and purple and the other was silver and black. The second one was actually something that Kirlia pushed her into getting, but she didn't know why.

_"Just trust me." _That was all the little poke would answer with when questioned about it. Before long, they decided to go and see what their friends were up to. They saw the candy store as they left the last clothing store.

"I wonder if Zion is even still-"

"AH, don't grab that boy-" A crash was heard soon after in the direction they were going.

"I guess that answers that." When the 2 girls entered, they saw that "Someone" had knocked over a giant gumdrop and a few bites had been taken from it. The boy causing all the trouble soon came over to them holding something in his hands.

"You either one ever had a candy cane? Their my second favoritest candy, second only to lemon drops." Before the girls could even answer, Zion had poked a stick of the candy in each of their mouths. He was off again instantly, grabbing more and more candy that he piled into his bag. Omnivee was also running around eating almost as much as her partner was. The effect was dizzying as the 2 devoured almost everything they grabbed.

"Maybe we should go and see about Rayne instead." They slowly backed out of the shop and left the boy and poke to their work.

_"We should limit his sugar consumption. It can't be good for him." _Kira just nodded and they went to find the other member they knew the location of. When they got to the casino, they could hear the sounds of many people winning, losing, and otherwise having fun.

"Kira, Kirlia, Over here." The girl they were looking for was next to a packed 21 table. She had a stack of chips that almost hid her behind them. When they got to her, she had just won even more of them.

"You must be good at whatever this game is." Kira guessed that the more chips you had, the better you must have to be.

"Yeah, I haven't lost yet. This is kinda my obsession. Always has been. Stay." She waved her hand over her cards before the dealer flipped them over to show she had won again. "I'm going to be here for a bit so if you want to stay, I'm cool with it. Hit."

"No, I think we're gonna see what else is here. What else do people normally look at in a mall?" Rayne was hardly paying attention while gathering more chips from just winning again.

"You can always check out the music store. A lot of people check those out."

"Alright, thanks." The 2 left the place after seeing their friend win, yet again. They walked for a while looking for the store they had been told of. The mall was huge though and finding it was obviously going to be harder said then done.

_"Can we rest for a bit. My feet are getting tired. I never actually have walked for too long before, someone always carries me at some point." _Kirlia had already went to sit at a bench that she saw. Kira agreed and sat with her. Both girls were tired from walking, plus all the stuff they had seen during the day. It wasn't long before they let their eyes close and drifted to sleep while sitting on the bench in the mall.

--

About an hour had passed the sleeping girls before they began to stir. They would probably have stayed out for a while longer if it wasn't for the music that had filled the mall through the speakers. It was quite beautiful to them when they heard it. Kirlia thought it had sounded familiar, but still different from something she had heard before.

"What a nice sound. I wonder where it's coming from." Kira was standing and stretching a little before she looked at the little poke.

_"I think it's from that way." _She pointed down toward a stage in the distance. After they got the tiredness out of their system, they went to see who was making the wonderful sound. When they got there, they saw a band that was sitting on the stage looking at the person playing one of the members guitars. Their set-up had been set into the speakers, and other people had noticed the sound and were gathering around to hear it.

_"Very talented, isn't he. This is one of his favorite hobbies." _The human looked down at the Pokemon who was talking about her partner who was standing on the stage playing the beautiful music that had attracted them to it.

"He is very talented. Not only at music, but he can battle well." She was now staring at the boy as he continued to play. He had seen them listening and decided to finish the song he was on before stopping. _"He also has a heart that I didn't think a human could before meeting him." _She continued to stare admiringly. Her friend next to her was just smiling as she heard the thought, but said nothing about it.

When he finished, the band got up and shook his hand, while offering a spot with them anytime he wanted. The people that had gathered were also cheering for the music he had produced. It took 10 minutes to get away from them all and join the girls. Zion, Omnivee, and Rayne had also came to them, but hadn't seen Kira or Kirlia until some of the crowd had gone.

"That was something. I never knew you could play man." Zion had came and patted the last member of the group on the back while they all got together.

"I was just trying to pass the time while these 2 slept. I didn't want to wake you since you were still getting over that weird sickness. Anyways, how about we go to the center and get some food?" They were all ready for the suggestion and followed without hesitation.

When they were done eating, the girls all decided it was time for bed and went to their rooms. Rayne was in the one next to Kira and Kirlia's. Omnivee joined her and Raz stayed in the lobby talking to Zion. He had told him they needed to talk about something important.

"It was fun today. I think I needed it." Kira was already laying down while Kirlia was getting into the bed.

_"That's good. I know it was fun for everyone, if not a little odd with the evolutions and all." _The two covered up and were almost out.

"Night Kirlia." Kira put her arm over the already half-asleep Pokemon.

_"Night sis." _She saw the look on the other girls face after saying this and simply smiled.

"Night little sis."

--

"We have a big problem with the gym tomorrow. I looked into it, and neither of us can compete in it." Raz stared at the now stunned Zion. They were in trouble indeed.

--

A/N: Hope you like the chapter. Took me a while to figure where I was gonna go with everything. Please review and have a nice day.


	16. Where The Flowers Are

"What do you mean we can't compete?" Zion was standing and staring at Raz for what he had just revealed to him. "No gym can turn down a challenger. It's in the rule book."

"I thought so to, but this gym is the only exception." Raz looked like he had felt the same thing as his friend was. "The only trainers that can compete in it now are girls. Apparently, Erika doesn't like the idea of males in her gym anymore."

"So what are we gonna do?" Zion had more worry on his face now then at any other time in his life.

"Why do you always ask me what to do? I do have a plan of course, but you didn't know that."

"I don't know. You always seemed to know what you were doing in the past. Remember 3 years ago when you came up with a plan in a second on how to get me out of that quicksand." The boys eyes began to glaze a bit when he remembered the event.

"I just held out a piece of cake and you tore yourself out. It really didn't take much thought. Anyways, my plan is actually a deal I made with her." Zion looked at him like he was more modest then need be about coming up with things quickly. He also thought about how fast Raz had figured out how to save the girls from Team Rocket.

"What kind of deal?"

"We can't compete, that is true. Kira and Rayne can compete however. I told her that if she would let them battle her in a special type of match, then you and me get our badges as well as them." Raz was obviously proud of getting the leader to agree to such a thing. Zion was still looking worried though.

"What kind of match could they win to get us badges also?"

"It will be a handicap 3-on-2 match. Erika and her partners will get 1 Pokemon each while our team gets 2. The thing is that while their team will all be out at one time, ours can only have 2 all together at the same time." He frowned a little at the disadvantage their team would have, but dismissed it to think positively.

"You think we can even win with the little that Kira knows? She hasn't exactly gotten a great deal better with the only time she even trained." Zion let his worries reach the surface however.

"We don't have a choice, we have to try. Worse case is that we skip this gym and move on. I don't think we will have to though. I have faith in her." His eyes were a little odd looking when he said this. Zion thought he was thinking of some grand strategy to win.

"I guess. I'm gonna go to bed and think about some things. See ya in the morning." He headed toward his room slightly less worried about their odd situation.

"Night." Raz seemed to tense a bit when Zion was gone. _"I think we can win, but what if she really isn't ready. I hope I've done the right thing." _He made no effort to go to his room throughout the night.

--

The group were wondering where Raz was the next morning. He hadn't been to his room according to Grim who had been alert for his trainer. The big dog looked tired from lack of sleep and decided to rest when everyone else went looking. Kirlia couldn't pick up his brain waves within a mile, so her and Kira went toward the woods while Rayne, Omnivee, and Zion took to the streets to ask people.

"Why would he just disappear without telling us where he went to? I just doesn't sound like him." Kira was visibly upset that Raz didn't let even Kirlia know he left.

_"He was a little strange yesterday. After we joined back with him, he kept thinking of music notes and differences in tunes of his favorite songs. It was kind of like he wanted to keep me out."_ Kira took her into her arms when tears began forming. _"He never keeps stuff from me." _

"Don't be so upset by it, I'm sure it was something else." It hurt Kira to see her poke-sister cry. Raz was gonna have some explaining to do when they found him.

After an hour of searching, the city team went to the gym to see if he had told them something. Zion had decided to let Rayne in on the plan when they were almost to it.

"So that's what he told you last night. It sounds like a good plan to me. We can destroy those plants like we were a lawnmower." Her confidence vastly shadowed Zion's despair. He began feeling a great deal better.

"I know you 2 can do it. I just wish I was helping to do the job." His frown came back, but was playful as he thought of the fact that their team would not and could not fail.

They got to the gym just as it was opening it's doors. A pair of young girls were standing in front of it looking at any passers by. When they saw Zion coming, they stepped out in front of the door.

"No males aloud. Please leave." The guards were mechanical about it, apparently from having to constantly deal with men trying to enter.

"We aren't here to battle, we just wanted to know if you had seen a young man come by here this morning. He's a bit taller then me with spiked black hair and glasses. He usually wears a silver hoodie with gold designs." Zion looked to the girls hopeful he had came this way.

"We did see a young man yesterday that fits the description, but not today. Sorry." The trio didn't know where else to look with the heartbreaking news.

"Maybe we should just go and wait for the others at the center. I'm sure he'll be back anyways, he wouldn't leave his Pokemon if he didn't plan on being back." Rayne was forcing her voice to sound hopeful at the thought of Raz just returning.

"I guess. Hey, we can eat some pancakes while we wait on him. I know a recipe that is so sweet it makes the pancakes that much sweeter." He grabbed the girls arm and went like a rocket back to the center, with Omnivee trailing him closely.

--

"Where could he have gone? We've been searching for over an hour now." Kira was getting a little distressed at their inability to find Raz. She even let Crobat out from the pokeball she brought. He didn't see anything either. All their hope was almost lost.

_"Wait, I sense something." _Kirlia was on Kira's head looking around for what had just hit her thought radar.

"But we came through here like 5 times. What could you have not heard before?"Crobat heard their conversation and came down to see what was up.

_"I wasn't thinking about it before. This time I was trying to push it farther and I heard a faint sound. It's actually just 20 feet that way." _Crobat took that as a sign and went in the direction she had pointed. It wasn't long before he came up and began calling for them.

When they got over, they saw that Raz was leaning against a tree near a field a flowers. His mind hadn't been easy to find because he had fallen asleep there.

_"That explains it. I can't hear unless their awake if I'm not paying really close attention. Why did he come out here to sleep though?" _The little poke had jumped off Kira's shoulders and sat down next to her partner.

"Maybe he didn't mean to. What if he just meant to come out here for a walk and just fell asleep?" The girl took a seat next to Kirlia while they thought about why their friend had come out here. It wasn't long before he began waking up. It was a little of a shock to see the 3 others around him when he woke.

"What are you all doing out here?" He got up and began stretching while they stared at him confused. "What?"

"What are we doing out here? We were searching for you. Do you know how it feels to wake up and someone is missing?" Kira found herself standing up and almost yelling at the boy. Unfortunately her anger was causing her eye to tear up. The sight made Kirlia get just as upset with him and she began her own angry words.

_"See what you did. We were scared because you didn't tell us you had gone somewhere and then you made my sister cry. How could you be so thoughtless!" _The last little bit came out as angry screams toward the boy. Kirlia jumped up into Kira's arms and tried to calm her down. Raz didn't know what to do so he just sat back down and started from the beginning.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stay out here when this began. It's just that, I needed to think. Yesterday when I got into town, I went to check out the gym and discovered that me and Zion couldn't compete. I made a deal with Erika but I was still worried. That was why I was thinking of various things that would keep you out Kirlia. I know you like to listen when no one thinks you are.

"So after I let Zion know what was up, I decided to take a walk to think things through all the way. I got to this little field of flowers and sat down. I was about ready to go when I guess sleep just came over me. I really didn't mean to upset you." He looked at the girls who were now sitting next to him and they just nodded accepting his apology. He was about to stand up when something struck his thoughts. "Did you call her your sister?"

The 2 just looked at each other and then back at him. Not knowing quiet what to say, Kirlia decided to explain things in a less then specific way. _"Well, I kinda helped her through some things. Things just sorta went from there and we are sisters in a sense. I help her with what she needs and she carries me when I need it." _

He just looked at them and shrugged. Apparently it was a good enough explanation to him. They soon decided to go back to the center and let everyone know they found him. Zion was busy in the kitchen with Omnivee while Rayne was at a table waiting. When the group joined her, they let her know what had happened.

"Why did you go out there to think? They have plenty of room here to walk around." Everyone looked at him waiting for his answer. Kirlia and Kira had an idea why but he didn't know they did.

"Because the forest is more connected to Shaymin and I was hoping for some wisdom from her." He looked at the rest of them and was surprised by their lack of surprise.

"Well, let us know next time dude. We can join you and maybe get some lakes built." Zion came in carrying a giant tray of pancakes that looked like they were sparkling. "Dig in. These are made from my own special recipe."

The group each slowly took a bite of them. Each had a piece in their mouths when Zion took 3 at once and shoved them in. Those were the only pieces that any of them ate.

"Too sweet." Kira was using a napkin trying to get the food out of her mouth. Raz had managed to swallow his piece but pushed the rest away and went to get something else for them. Kirlia just spat it out and gave hers to Omnivee who was eating almost as many as her partner. Rayne just stared at the boy that had given her a food that was so sweet it burned. She was forming a way to get back at him for it.

"Here you go." Raz returned with a more traditional breakfast of eggs, sausage, and biscuits. This they all enjoyed while the original chefs continued on their creations.

"So what did you mean by you made a deal with Erika when you found out you and Zion couldn't compete?" Kira finally thought about what he had said when explaining why he was busy thinking last night.

"Well, since we can't, you and Rayne can participate in a special match that if you win, we get our badges also." Her expression instantly became one of terror.

"B-b-but I don't r-r-really know how to b-battle." Her stuttering came back at the level of nervousness she now felt.

"Don't worry. I'll be their helping you remember." Rayne looked at her still radiating confidence.

"There is a twist that you may not know about though. I didn't even let Zion know. The full rules aren't just a 3-on-2 with you guys having 2 Pokemon each. The other part is that you can only have one that is yours to begin with. Your second poke has to be one from me and Zion." The girls looked at him after his explanation and tried to think of who they were using on their side.

"How can we control your Pokemon?" Kira looked at Kirlia when she said this, believing that her sister would listen anyways.

"Simple, we tell them to. We should probably let all our poke's out and see who you can use. I figure Rayne can use one of Zi's and you can use one of mine." They all pulled out their pokeballs and released their big group.

Raz had Crobat, Grim, and Bellossom. Kirlia was already out and just danced over to the group. Zion released Zurtle, Gyarados, and Omnivee was already out with them. Kira let out Gallade and Absol with them being her only Pokemon. Finally Rayne released Aron, Shinx, Leafeon, Wingull, and one the rest didn't know about.

"I won this little guy at the casino. He's Riolu." The little blue dog like poke looked at the group and hid behind Rayne's leg looking around shyly.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Here Kira. This is why I jumped off yesterday. I saw him and thought you may feel better with a third poke." Raz tossed her a Ultra Ball that felt odd to the touch. She pressed the button and released the poke from it. After the light faded, a slender blue serpent was in front of her. He looked around for a second and then looked straight at his new trainer.

_"You caught her a Dragonair?" _Kirlia was starring at him with wide eyes. _"That's one of the hardest Pokemon to catch."_

"Yeah, but she was so depressed the other day and I thought it might help her to have another partner." They looked at the two new partners as Kira timidly walked up to the dragon. He was still and let her reach up and pet his head. When she finally did, he leaned into it and she let out a sigh of thanks.

"Are you sure about this? He would be a great member of your team." Kira was unsure about getting a poke that she didn't catch. He had helped with Absol, but she was still the one that caught her.

"Of course. My team is great as it is, and you need another member to use. Now back to business, which of my team would you like to use?" She starred at his Pokemon for a few seconds before pointing to Kirlia.

"You did promise her this match. Plus I think I would have an easier time with her now that we are close to each other." The little dancer jumped into the girls arms and hugged her for picking her.

"No problem. You guys get to rest this one, but we'll train for the next one." He recalled the rest while Kira did the same with all but Dragonair. She continued admiring him while Raz went over to Rayne who was still trying to decide who to pick.

"Well, Gyarados would be the strongest, but Zurtle is certainly interesting. Omnivee would probably fair well with it being part fire. I think that would be the best bet. I'll use Omnivee and Leafeon." The little fox's jumped up and ran around the girl for choosing them. Riolu jumped up when they started and hid his face in her shoulder.

"Don't be afraid. These are all our friends." She began patting him on the back to calm him a little. "I know. How about you get to know them some. Here." She walked over to Gyarados and placed the little poke on top of him. The little one instantly froze with fear of the giant monster.

"Maybe we should do this later." Zion saw the fear in his eyes as Gyarados looked at the little poke. Rayne sighed and the recalled him. Zion quickly did the same and recalled all his with the exception of Omnivee.

"Well, if our teams are set, let's go." Raz was at the door and was looking at the rest of the group. Kirlia and Kira were standing with her having just recalled Dragonair. Rayne, Zion, and their 2 Pokemon nodded and came over. "Time to cut some grass."

--

"This should be a good match." Zion was sitting with Raz in the bleachers around the gym arena. The field itself was covered with flowers that marked off the areas for the trainers to stand.

"Ready girls?" Erika was standing on one side with 2 girls that most would consider beautiful. They both nodded and all three sent out there Pokemon. The 2 girls had a Jumpluff and a Shiftry while Erika had a Vileplume.

"We can do this Kira. You ready?" She looked at her partner who was noticably nervous, but nodded in response and threw her ball up. Rayne did the same and soon Leafeon and Dragonair were out and staring at their oponents.

"YOU CAN DO THIS KIRA JUST BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!" Raz shouted to their team due to their seats having to be so far back.

"Thanks Raz, know I can. Let's do this Dragonair. Flamethrower!" The dragon nodded and released a giant flame at the closest oponent. Jumpluff narowly dodged the attack and began flying toward the him.

"Jumpluff, use stun spore." The floating flower began dropping tiny spores around to hopefully stop the dragon from moving.

"Leafeon, Razor Leaf before it gets near Dragonair." The leaf form of Eevee nodded and sent out dozens of tiny leaves at the target. A few hit, sending it backward and stopping the attack.

"Dragonair, lets use flamethrower again, but aim for the Vileplume." He saw the target and shot a flame straight for her. She just looked at it and smiled. Right before the flame hit, a light shield came up and stopped it.

"Sorry, but my Vileplume knows when to use her Protect without me having to tell her. Let's show them how mean you are my dear, Solar Beam." Light began filling into the center of the flowers head, charging the attack.

"Jumpluff, Stun Spore." "Shiftry, Faint Attack." The partners of the leader sent both their Pokemon at the duo.

"Dragonair, use Thunder Wave on Shiftry." "Leafeon, Razor Leaf the Jumpluff." They sent a counter on both. The leaves mannaged to drop Jumpluff just in time this round. Thunder Wave had barely missed Shiftry however and it hit Dragonair with a strong Faint Attack, sending it straight toward Vileplume.

"Fire!" A huge beam of energy burst from the flower and engulfed the dragon. While the girls were distracted, Jummpluff and Shiftry began attacking Leafeon. It wasn't long before the team took him down, but not before he managed to get a strong blow in on Jumpluff, ending it's match also. When all the light faded, Dragonair and Leafeon were down on the girls side, while Jumpluff was down on the leaders side.

"Two down. Ready to call it quits girls?" She looked on as they all recalled the fallen Pokemon and didn't bring out balls for the next 2.

"Pfft. Yeah right. Let's show them power Omnivee." The fox jumped out and began glowing with the same aura she had when first evolving.

"We can do this, for Raz Kirlia." The little dancer jumped out onto the field and stared the Shiftry straight on.

"Your funeral. Vileplume, use Vine Whip the fox-thing. I've never heard of an Omnivee." Two vines came out and shot straight for the fox.

"Well, get ready to learn who she is. Omnivee, Flamethrower." A jet of fire shot from her mouth as the aura that was 3 colors turned solid red. It caught the vines in the flame and continued for her target. The vines being out prevented her from dodging and she was on fire before anyone saw it coming.

"Let's finish the other one, Kirlia, use Psychic." Kira looked at the oponent but when nothing happened, she just starred at Kirlia.

_"He's a Dark type, I can't use a damaging Psychic attack." _She looked at her partner slightly ashamed at the weakness.

"What about Teleport, can you use it if your holding on to him?"

_"I think. It worked when we caught Grim."_ She looked at him trying to see the idea.

"Teleport onto him and then Teleport him over Vileplume." She nodded to her sister and then vanished. A second later Shiftry also Vanished just to reappear over Vileplume. When he landed on his partner, both were caught up in the flames. They both fell over as the fire stopped.

"Well, I guess they did it." Erika conceeded as her and her partner recalled their Pokemon. "You all 4 have won a Rainbow Badge."

"Yes, Kirlia, we did it." Rayne and Omnivee starred on as their partners were dancing in victory. Raz and Zion also looked on and smiled at the group.

--

"So I was wondering, why can't males compete here?" Zion was still a little upset at not using Omnivee in her first battle when Erika gave them the badges outside.

"Well, I originally only wanted those that understood the beauty of flowers, and when no men appeared to, I decided not to accept male challengers." She handed the last badge to Kira and turned to walk in. The group also began to walk away, with Raz in the back looking at the leader.

"You should put some flowers around the front. It would make the place more appealing. Lavender and Violets look the best with the green walls I would say." As Erika turned to look at who said this, she just saw Raz smiling before turning and walking to catch up with his friends.

_"Maybe we should relook things." _The leader went off to look at the flowersand see if the boy was right about blue and purple flowers on her green gym walls.

"So, where to next?" Kira was in front with Kirlia in her arms.

"Next is Fushia where Koga is the gym leader with his daughter. It's a team gym so we should pick partners on the way." Raz looked at Zion who was looking at Rayne when he said they had to partner up. "But we can decide that all later, let's get some lunch before we head out."

After eating at one of the many places to pick from, the group heads through the path to cycling road while getting ready for their next challenge.

--

A/N: There ya go. It took me a bit to write because I was reading Breaking Dawn, which was totally worth going to get at midnight. For those of you that havent heard of the Twilight series, which Breaking Dawn is the last book to, I want you to stop reading and find a pencil. Don't keep reading to see where I'm going, just do it. Got one, ok. Place it between your midle and ring fingers. Now with the other hand, squeez those two together. If you have done this you will notice it really hurts. You have just recieved your punishment for not reading the Twilight series, now go get it.

Kirlia: That was mean. I wont be surprised if they stop reading because of it.

Yochan: Pfft. I was just distributing justice.

Kirlia: Apologize to them.

Yochan: But they started it by not reading the best series to ever be written.

Kirlia: Yochan, do it now or else.

Yochan: All right, I'm sorry to those that had to hurt themselves for not having read it.


	17. The Egg Race of Track Town

"Hmmm." Kira had been looking at Dragonair's ball ever since the battle had ended the day before.

"Relax, he actually did better then I expected. He was fresh evolved when I caught him so he was still a little unused to the new body." Raz looked at the girl cheerily as he tried to explain why the strong dragon was defeated so easily. "The fact that her Vileplume is over 8 years old also helped it with pure power in her Solar Beam."

"But aren't Leafeon and Omnivee freshly evolved also?" The answer had her more confused at how Omnivee beat her while Leafeon had lost.

"Well, Leafeon did fall at the same time, but there were 2 on him and the body can only take that for a short amount of time. Omnivee only did one move and that was when the opponent was immobilized. I almost forgot to tell you how smart the move you had Kirlia do was. Dropping Shiftry onto the fire was brilliant." He smiled again before heading up to the front to get the map from Zion.

"So the next rest stop should be a little village just over this hill. I wonder what kind of candy they have there." Zion's eyes lit with the possibilities of a candy store. Omnivee held the same expression as he did about it before the idea became too much and both took off for the town.

"Why did you give him the map this morning? He's such an idiot that he probably got us lost instead." Rayne had been acting differently since that morning because "someone" had poured water on her to wake up.

_"I wonder if she always acts like this when she gets annoyed. It is how Zion remembers her on their first meeting." _Kirlia had moved from walking to sitting on Raz's shoulders. It didn't surprise him when she just appeared there, and he just kept going after grabbing her legs so she wouldn't fall.

"Probably." The boy let out a chuckle at the idea of what would happen to Zion if he "woke" her up again. Kirlia let out a little giggle after reading his thoughts.

"Hey, hurry up! Somethings going on up here!" Zion and Omnivee had returned to the top of the hill and was yelling to the rest of the group. They heard and ran hoping it wasn't anything bad.

What they saw from the top of the hill wasn't what they expected in the least. The entire village they were about to stop at was covered with decorations. They also noticed that a big group was gathered at an arena type area.

"What's up here?" Raz started toward the village at a speed that only Zion could keep up with. "Maybe they're having a tournament or something." The smaller boy running with him took a boost of speed and raced ahead to the posts that marked the village opening. He seemed to pull a piece of paper off one of the posts and was reading it when Raz got to him.

"This is Track Town. Today their holding a race that any trainer can enter with one poke-partner to race on. Winner gets a choice of a poke-egg, 10,000 poke-dollars, or a years worth of-" Raz looked at the boy who began drooling before he finished the last prize. He knew only one thing could make Zion do that, and that was cake.

"How about it then? I know he'll enter now, but what about you 2?" The girls had made it just in time to hear the prizes.

"Hmmf, a race is just a waste of energy. I'll just watch you all." Not even the prospect of winning the money was enough for her to get out of the sour mood.

"Your gonna bet on the race, aren't you?" Kira had seen her in the casino, and a race could always be counted on to have a betting area. Rayne just shrugged and headed to where people were already making bets. "Anyways, it sounds fun to me."

"Great, hope you have fun. I'll be cheering ya on." She looked at the older boy for a minute.

"Your not gonna try?" She had a pout on her face now, something Kirlia had taught her to try sometime.

"Er, I don't really have a poke to ride, but I guess I can think of something." He looked up at his partner on his shoulder with an eyebrow raised.

_"It'll work. Stop staring at me like that." _She read his idea through his mind quickly and then went on the defensive when he kept looking at her.

"Well, at least now I know I'll enter." A familiar egotistic tone was attached to the voice Raz knew all too well.

"Ian. I didn't know they let slugs race." His group all laughed at the brother of their friend. Soon, his ally and Zion's sister also appeared.

"Sara." Raz had never really had a problem with Zion's sister, but she also never really spoke to him to give reason. She just nodded in response to the boy's greeting.

"You gonna compete also sis? It would be nice to beat you at something other then battle skill."

"Like you can beat me at anything. Your skill is like a fly, annoying but worthless." She knew it wasn't one of her best come-backs, but she had just woken up.

"Easy you 2. Save your energy to race with." After growing up with them for 8 years, Raz still didn't like the twins to fight. "We should probably find out were to sign up real quick also."

--

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 13th annual Race of Renewal. We have quite the variety in racers this year. As usual, 10 have been randomly drawn to participate in the race. We have, Leon who is partnered with his Arcanine, Arcane. The second participant will be Kara who will be riding a skateboard attached to her partner Luxray. Third is Zion who will be riding his Gyarados. Our forth racer is Ian who will be teaming with Fearow. Number 5 will be Estia, and her partner for this is Caelum the Blastoise. An odd partner for a race, but we'll see how well she does.

"The sixth participant will be Kira with her Dragonair. Lucky number 7 is Sara who will be riding a Rapidash. Eighth will be Xisin who is partnered with a rare red Gyarados. Our ninth racer is Kurri who is also teamed with a Luxray. Our final participator is Raz who is partnering with his Kirlia. That's probably the oddest team we've seen today folks but who knows what type of strategy they have. When the ref explains the rules, the race will begin." The speakers made a cracking sound that signaled the end of the announcer for the moment.

"OK, racers. The course is a 3 mile run with hills, curves, and other obstacles in your path. Flying Pokemon must maintain a distance of 15 feet or less from the ground. At the end of the marked run is a couple waiting to give each person a poke-egg to be brought back here. The first 3 to cross the finish line will get to keep their eggs if they wish and the first to finish will receive another prize of their choice between 10,000 poke-dollars, a special poke-egg, or a years supply of cake from the Hightide Bakery. When you here the whistle, the race shall begin." With the rules clear the ref left the field to let them all get ready.

"I hope this is as much fun as it sounds." A boy, that had Dark clothes and a hooded jacket that he had up covering his head, was talking to a girl that looked like she was barely holding herself together. She had shoulder length purple hair and was wearing a white sun hat with white shorts and shoes with a red sun-dress and white fingerless gloves. Raz had watched them come out when the names Leon and Kara were called.

He could see the others were also almost ready. The girl that came when Estia was called was sitting on top of her Blastoise at the starting line. She was wearing a dress that had Eevees all over it and her hair was puled into a ponytail that was brown and bushy like an Eevee's tail. Ian was chatting with Sara also at the line. Kira was sitting with Dragonair and looked like she was getting nervous. The dragon appeared to be nudging her trying to be calming.

Zion was running in circles around the guy named Xisin's red Gyarados. From the looks of it, he was almost about to hit the boy. The girl that had come out as Kurri was leaning on his shoulder and their matching blue and white jumpsuits made them an obvious couple. They even had similar short black hair. Raz decided it might be a good idea to get into position, so he and Kirlia went and sat next to Kira and Dragonair.

"Racers ready?" The announcer came back on and was prepared to call the match when it began.

"No way can you win with that pathetic thing Rasputin. This race is as good as mine." Ian was atop his Fearow and was in position next to Kira who was now on Dragonair looking more determined after hearing the boy's comment.

"Care to put a wager on it with all that money dad keeps giving you? 100,000 says you end one place behind me, no matter what position you finish in." He looked at his brother's face, but was surprised by the lack of reaction on it.

"It's your loss. Like I said, this race is mine." Raz just nodded to him and pulled out a deck of cards before beginning some type of game with Kirlia as they waited.

Not long after, a loud, high-pitched whistle sounded and everyone took off. Mostly everyone anyways. When all the dust settled, the crowd saw that Raz was still sitting where he had been playing cards.

"Got a 3 of Staryu?"

_"Go Goldeen." _The boy drew a card.

"And the racers are already at the half mile mark with Ian holding a slight lead over the rest. Zion and Sara are close on him with Kira close with them. They begin rounding the bend and Kara makes a move and takes the lead. Bet no one saw that coming. They are now approaching the trickier part of the course folks.

"They are about to start the climb of a mountainside to get to the last 2.5 miles of course, and Kara still maintains a lead with Kira in second and Leon just taking third form Ian. I wonder how this race will go on folks."

The race was now on a steep incline the announcer had just talked about. Kara had managed to get a steady lead over the others and was almost at the top.

"I think it's time to take care of some competition Fearow. Use Whirl wind and let's get rid of the 3 losers ahead of us." His bird cried out before flapping it's wings faster making a tornado appear that headed for the lead racers. It hit Leon but his Arcanine was able to shrug it off. Kira was also able to ignore it, but when it hit Kara's board, she flew high into the air.

"Well, one is good enough for this time." Ian watched as the girl started coming back down to earth. Leon saw her and had Arcane leap back to catch her, but costing him valuable time. "Or 2." The boy had a smirk as he took 2nd and was gaining on Kira who had slowed to look back at what happened.

"And with that freak accident, Kara is out of the race. We just got word from a ref saying that Leon is also dropping. We still have 8, er 7 racers with great shots of victory. The rest are now over the hill and are heading on the straight stretch to the eggs. This is a make or break area as a faster top speed will help get a substantial lead. Let's see what happens."

Just as the announcer said, some of the Pokemon were getting a great deal faster. Kira was still holding first with Ian on her tail. Behind them, Xisin and Estia had taken third and forth from the twins who were starting to argue from on their partners. It didn't take Kurri long to grab fifth, and she was still gaining.

"And we are now getting word that Kira and Ian have arrived and have claimed their eggs just seconds apart. Both are now on their way back with the 3rd, 4th, and 5th place racers just now getting their eggs. The last 2, Zion and Sara have apparently been disqualified and are now having a battle in a field to the side of the track while the refs are trying to break it up.."

The race was moving quickly and soon Kira and Ian were neck-and-neck. They were just down the hill when Raz stood up finally and picked Kirlia up.

"Ready?" He looked at his partner in his arms as she yawned and nodded. In the blink of an eye, they disappeared from the line. The 2 leaders were still ridiculously close to each other as they got within 100 yards of the finish.

"And it's impossible for the others to take the lead from these 2 as they are almost at the finish. It's gonna be a photo finish people." A flash of light marked the finish as both racers appeared to cross at the same time. "The picture will be reviewed before the winners are announced."

"You did great Kira." Raz was standing next to her as she began getting off of Dragonair who was tired from the amount of energy he used.

"Thanks." She returned him with a smile. Kirlia was sitting next to them.

"The results are in folks. If you look at the monitor, you will see the results as I announce them." A giant screen showed the final part of the race in slow motion, and most of the people were shocked at what they saw. "The results were checked and the winner of this years race is Kira and her Dragonair. Second place goes to Raz and Kirlia and third goes to Ian and his Fearow. How about a round of applause for our winners."

"WHAT?! How did you get second without me seeing it?" Ian was fuming at his brother who was looking at the purple egg Kira had picked and compared it to the white one he had. While hers' had a oozing design on it, his was covered with light blue snowflakes.

"I told you I would end exactly in front of you. Me and Kirlia decided to just teleport to the end and then back. We were waiting on Kira to cross before we did, and since you were there it made things easier. Now the bet was 100,000 if I recall." He held his hand out waiting for the pay-up. After much complaining under his breathe, Ian payed his brother before walking off.

"Wow, what are you gonna do with the winnings?" Kira had watched the exchange after returning Dragonair to his pokeball to rest. She had missed his having waited for her to cross.

"Well, I don't really need it so I'm gonna make sure the others all get something from this." He headed to where the rest were and began handing each, except Zion and Sara, a lump from the amount. Kira just watched before a ref approached her for her prize pick.

"I think I'll pass on them all, but if everyone could keep their eggs they picked, and the 2 that had fallen out before hand got one each, that would be nice." The ref took some notes and nodded with a smile before heading for the announcer's booth.

"Ladies and gentlemen, our champion Kira has picked her winnings. Instead of one of the prizes, she wanted for each racer to get to keep their picked egg and the ones that didn't make it to the end even receive one. Let's hear it for her generosity."

The crowd all applauded as she went to join the rest before they headed to find Rayne, and see how much she had won at the betting booth's. They could see her and Omnivee in the crowd with a giant sack behind them as they joined the cheering. Even the other racers were clapping as she joined them, and Raz noticed that today was the first day Kira had smiled so much.

"We need more days like this then."

--

A/N: That was fun. Hope you all like how you characters were represented and a few note everyone should know. (a) This wasn't a planned thing for the story, just an idea that took-off so when I asked for characters, this wasn't the original intent. (b) On Estia, I didn't have a discription but with her team being full of Eevees I decided to make her a fanatic. That's it and hope you did enjoy it and please remember to review. Good day.


	18. The Lost Past

"So what egg did you pick Zi?" Raz went to sit next to the boy while they waited for their Pokemon to be restored to full health. Even Kirlia and Omnivee went to get checked out.

"Mines got this neat blue and tan spiral effect to it." As he held it out, Raz pulled out his own for his buddy to see. "Wow. I beat it's an Ice poke."

"Hope so. Ice is one of the, and I'm sorry for lack of a better word, coolest types." Right as he said it, the boy next to him burst out laughing. Kira looked up at the duo from where she was sitting behind them. She had been looking at her egg with Rayne for most of the time.

"So I'm thinking yours will be a poison poke Kira." Rayne had just finished counting another stack of her winnings she had kept with her. Raz made her put most of it in the bank. She also sent some to people she said were closer then family.

"You really think. I guess it does kinda look like a Muk or Grimer."

"It'll be neat to see our new partners when they come out." Raz had moved and was next to Kira now, holding his egg next to hers. She stared at his with amazement of the sparkles you could see if you looked just right.

"Your Pokemon are ready. They are all back to full health, but your Kirlia fell asleep while waiting so you may want to recall her to a pokeball before you travel." The Nurse Joy set 4 trays of their pokeballs out with Kirlia out cold next to Raz's.

"I'll carry her. She isn't the biggest fan of her ball so I never make her go into it." They all got their balls and Raz picked up his partner. They smiled to the nurse as they walked out to continue their trek to Fuchsia.

--

"We're lost aren't we." Kira was in her sleeping bag for the night with Kirlia also in hers next to the girl. It had been a week since they left Track Town.

"If by lost you mean we never let Zion hold the map again, then yes we're lost." Rayne had gone to insulting their navigator for the past 2 days. Her annoyed factor was maxed out at this point.

"Hmm." Everyone turned to see Raz looking at the stars. He hadn't said anything at all in the past few days as they got more lost.

"It's not my fault they make maps so hard to read." Zion was sitting away from everyone as Kira seemed to be the only one not wanting to kill him. Even Omnivee was upset at her trainer.

"You held the frigging map upside down. How stupid can one person possibly be."

"Just leave me alone." As the group had gotten more lost, Zion was quickly out of sweets and had become the same way he was at the gym in Vermilion. He didn't even smile that day.

The smell of berries and stew woke everyone up. Raz was standing over a fire with pot hanging over it and was pouring berries into whatever he was making. He had taken back to cooking when Zion had quit being Zion.

"Smells good, what is it?" Kira was always trying to defuse things from the way they were so that everything would be normal again.

"Berry stew." He scooped her out a bowl and then another for Kirlia and himself while they waited for the others to get up. When he handed his partner hers, he went off with his to a tiny river that was close by. The girls just watched as he sat down and stared into the water at his own reflection.

_"He's just worried about how things are going. If Zion and Rayne keep at each other, one might leave, or even both may." _Kirlia looked at her sister while taking a sip of her stew.

"What could I do to help?" She also took a sip and found it to be very good.

_"I do have an idea but he won't help me with it."_ The boy looked over at the 2 and Kirlia just stuck her tongue out at him, making him smile a bit.

"I'll help if you think it will do any good." The poke's smile grew bigger with her plan finally open to her.

It didn't take long to set it all up. Kira carefully unzipped the sleepers bags so they would stay asleep. Kirlia got a spot ready and then used her Psychic powers to lift them up and move them into position.

_"Ready to help these 3 cool off?" _Kira nodded and Raz went to stand by them. He was already laughing a little before the power that held the sleepers up quit and all 3 fell into the cold morning water of the river.

When they came up out of it, the trio stared at their dry counterparts. After looking at each other, they jumped out of the river and started chasing them. Zion would have gotten Raz if his sandals hadn't made him slip. Omnivee wasn't having any luck with Kirlia either as every time she got close, the other teleported. Rayne was hot on Kira as they went in a sprint away from the camp.

"I'm gonna see how you like being tossed into cold water. It's not a pleasant way to wake up." She dove for her target and just caught her ankle, tripping the girl up. She held tight waiting for her prey to try and get away, but Kira just laid there not moving, except for the giggle that continued to escape her. As she reached and grabbed the girls arm, she also started rolling her over.

"So you and Raz thought it would be funny to-" When she had Kira turned completely over, she saw something she didn't expect. She still had her arms but could feel them tugging against her. When the girl did get them free, she pulled her hair back over the right side of her face.

_"Oh crap." _Kirlia teleported as the thoughts came to her sister of what had just happened, and she was instantly at the girl's side, grabbing her as the fear of her expectations began making her cry.

"What are you Kira?" The younger girl stood up and held a hand out as she waited for an explanation.

As Kira took her hand, she looked at Kirlia who just nodded. _"It'll be alright."_

"Let's get back and I can explain everything. I guess you all need to know some things about me." They walked back slowly without talking. When they arrived, Raz was still dry but Zion was soaked even more then earlier. Omnivee was laying next to the fire trying to dry her fur.

"Guy's, come over here for a bit." Rayne sat down next Kirlia who was still holding on to Kira.

"How much do you know about me?" Kira decided it would be easier if she knew how much they thought they knew.

"You were a captive of Team Rocket until we saved you at Mt. Moon. You weren't comfortable with battling but I think your over it now with you beating Erika and all. Other then that, you haven't ever told us anything. Is something wrong?" Raz knew that the girl had fear in her eye that he could see.

"Nothings wrong, yet. I want you to understand some things. First is that I want you all to know and remember that I **am **a human girl." The group, with the exception of Kirlia, looked at her oddly now. "I'll show you why I say that in a minute. The second thing is that I'm not all human."

She began rolling up her shirt-sleeves til her shoulder was showing. Almost at the shoulder was a silver band that tiny spots of gold ran threw every few seconds. She then rolled up her shorts and the same band was about mid-way on her thigh. "Both my arms and legs are robotic. When I was brought in by Rocket, they modified me to be the first experimental member. Half my heart is this way also, which means a static charge with enough juice will knock me out."

She took a deep breath before looking up at the rest to see their reactions. Raz was calm and waiting for her to continue. Zion and Omnivee were wide-eyed, but not in a bad way it seemed. Rayne was staring at the ground continually muttering the word rocket so low the only way to hear her was to be sitting near her.

"That isn't all they did though." She put her hand up to her face before looking at her side to see that Kirlia was watching and nodded when she looked. As she pulled her hair out of the way, the group, minus Kirlia and Rayne, saw her full face for the first time.

From the forehead, down the right side of her nose, and along the jawline was some type of silvery metal that moved the mirrored way of her left side.. Her right eye was the same color as her other one, but the area around the iris had specks that were the same as her arms were.

"They made sure that if I was a failure, they would ruin my life so no one would accept me. I did escape from them once before, but when anyone saw my face, they would run away. So I went back to them and did whatever they told me to do. That was what Eddy meant when he said I would come back like before.

"On the day I met Nami, she saw this and said for me to tell you, but I was still scarred about your reaction. You had just met me and would be entered into a feud with them. After they attacked us in Vermilion, I decided not to go back. I also decided to end things, so the morning of your gym battle Raz, I was on the roof of the Poke-Center. Kirlia saw what I was about to do and stopped me.

"That was why I didn't come to watch you. She was helping me get through some things I had to work on. That's why I call her my sister, she knew on that first day and still cared enough to go too far to help me. When you and Zion entered Mt. Moon, She saw my face through my mind. She's why I'm telling you this now."

Kira picked the little dancer up and hugged her deeply, even letting some tears escape both her.

_"You are a sister to me. No matter what happens, we will always be family." _The Psychic made sure they all could hear her. This was important to let be known. Both soon turned to see the other's faces.

Zion and Omnivee were still wide-eyed, but still not in a bad way. It was like they were just shocked a little and were beginning to get over it. Rayne was still looking down, but now she had a small smile on her face. Raz, who still had a calm look about him, was standing up and was quickly next to the sisters.

"She's right. No matter what, all of us are a family. We wouldn't turn on you because your different. You are still you, and that's all that matters." He let a big reassuring smile stretch across his face. Kira was just beginning to stop crying before he had spoke, but now fresh tears came up and over her eye's. She jumped up and hugged him as tight as she could while letting her sobs go. He just hugged her back and hoped she was alright.

"Family." Zion joined them while Omnivee wrapped her tail around Kira's leg.

"Always." Rayne also joined in and let a few tears escape.

_"Don't group hugs just warm your heart." _Kirlia had moved to the top of Kira's head when the rest of the group joined.

"Yeah they do. You keep trying to grab my wallet and your getting anther bath Zi." The younger boys hand jumped from Raz's back while everyone laughed.

"Family." Kira had finally become more human then ever before.

--

--

A/N: Wow. That was something no one saw comming. Hope that helps with the electricity in the pool from way back in Cerulean and all the shy and awkwardness of Kira. This was planned originally for a later chapter, but I thought it felt like the time was right. See you soon and please remember to review.


	19. The Uneggspected Encounter

"Their shaking harder!" It had been a few hours since Kira had revealed her secret past, and the group had become even closer. Soon after she had finished, the poke-eggs started shaking. This was a sign that they were close to hatching.

"I see a crack on Zi's." Raz was watching next to Kira as a few more cracks formed on their friends egg.

"Let me see! Please be Water, please be Water." Zion had been chanting since the eggs started.

"There's a crack on mine now. I wonder what it will be." Kira was holding hers at this point to try and encourage the poke to come out. Raz just turned to his as cracks also began on it. Kirlia was sitting with Rayne and Omnivee, watching the 3 others.

"Do either of you know what they will be?" The girl looked at both poke's next to her. They both just shrugged though.

"Mantyke!" The blue egg of Zion's finally broke enough for the little blue manta ray Pokemon to come out.

"Yes! I love Mantykes. Their so cute." Zion was staring at the baby form of Mantine with pure admiration. The poke saw him and flew up and grabbed hold of him. Zion was thankful for his ability to understand Water Pokemon.

"Daddy." The group watched as the new member of their family continued hugging the first person it saw and therefor creating a bond to him as his parent. Another break of egg was heard soon after, followed by the cry of Raz's new partner.

"Artic!" A small blue bird with a long flowing tail emerged from the white and blue egg and looked straight at Raz.

"An Articuno. I picked the egg from a legendary bird?!" Shock took most of his mind at the pure luck of such a thing happening. It passed soon after when his new partner rubbed her head against him.

"You deserve such a rare find bud." Zion and Mantyke were looking at the baby legend with as much shock as their friend had. The baby ray soon went over to greet the bird though and they started playing a little.

"Maybe Riolu would do well with those 2 since he's just a baby also." Rayne soon released her own little one in front of the other babies. He responded very differently when he saw these 2. Almost immediately he joined them for their little chase they had started.

"Well, one to go then." With that, everyone looked at the last egg that was still cracking. After a while though, it stopped and a purple goo started coming from it. It wasn't long before all the goo was out and started moving to reclaim it's true shape.

"Guess it's a Grimer." Zion turned and went to find a ball he had picked up for the baby. Rayne also turned away and went back to sit with Kirlia and Omnivee. Raz, however, kept watching behind Kira. When Rayne looked over at her sitting partners, she saw that the goo made Kirlia wide-eyed.

_"T-t-that's not a Grimer." _The goo had finally formed most of it's body and was standing on four legs with a tail that looked like an Espeon's. The body that had formed was no longer the ooze but was a solid body that was similar to the eon's also. It wasn't until the head formed that they realized they had never seen a poke like this.

It's head showed it as an eon, but it's mouth and ears were what made it seem different. It's ears were odd in the way they were like a slicked back hair-do. The top of the mouth was normal, but the bottom had a line down the center that went all the was to the neck. When it opened it's mouth to speak, the line separated and the bottom jaw went down and to the sides, revealing a tongue that had 3 tips and had a hole in the center of the tip's joining point.

"Toxeon." The poke just looked at the girl in front of it and, without warning, jumped into her arms before licking her with it's odd tongue.

"T-toxeon? I've never heard of such a poke." Kira was petting the poke as she looked to Raz for some answers. He had his dex out and began having it look for info on their strange new member.

"Toxeon, the ooze-fox Pokemon. A very rare Pokemon that is considered an evolution of Eevee. This is disputed since the only way to get a Toxeon is for a Muk to breed with an Eevee. The breeding of the 2 is rare since the smell of Muk typically drives off most other Pokemon. If one is bred, the poke is said to have the ability to turn into an ooze that will allow it to get through and crack in a solid object. Has a tri-point tongue that can be used to latch on to prey and inject a venom into the targets blood stream. Current scan target sex, female. Known moves, Toxic, Poison Sting, Tackle, Lick, Sludge Bomb, and Acid.

"Whoa." Everyone was looking at the poke that was still nudging Kira and purring as she continued to pet her.

"Well, no matter. She's a member of the team now." The girl held the poke up before hugging her, which caused more purring. "Why don't you go meet the other babies." Once her feet hi the ground, Toxeon went right over to the others and started introducing herself. Articuno instantly flapped a greeting, which made Mantyke and Riolu accept her also.

"Hey, which type of ball do you guys want?" Zion held out a vast variety of pokeballs that he had. He had a Net-ball in his hand that was picked out for Mantyke.

"Let's let them decide. Articuno, can you come here?" The bird and other babies came over at being called and looked at what was in the trainers hands. "Which of these do you like? You and Toxeon can have any one you want."

After looking at each ball, the 2 poke's each pressed one and went into them without any struggle. Articuno had picked a new Blizz-ball for herself. It was designed to create a snowy environment for the poke. Toxeon picked a Waste-ball, which created a polluted environment that Poison Pokemon loved. When they went into the ball and the red light went off, Raz and Kira let them back out and added their balls to the others they each had.

"Should we let the others out to meet them?" Kira already had Dragonair, Gallade, and Absol's balls in her hands.

"Why not." The others all pulled out their balls and released them all. Grim, Crobat, and Bellossom all looked at Articuno as she flapped a greeting to each of them. Kirlia joined them with a bow to the baby. Mantyke was looking into Gyarados's eyes before flying around his head and over to Zurtle and Omnivee. The big sea serpent was surprised when the little one flew up to him again before laying on his head and falling asleep.

Dragonair, Absol, and Gallade all looked at the odd poke in front of them. It didn't take long for them all to accept her though. Rayne's Pokemon went out to all the rest to meet the new faces. Shinx went straight to Grim however, and met Articuno from the top of the dog's head. Aron had gone to Toxeon by rolling over to the group. Leafeon had joined her to meet the other form he didn't know he had. Wingull had traveled over to Zion's group with Riolu on his back.

--

The group decided to spend the rest of the day letting all the poke's out while they figured out where they were on the map. Everything was going well for a couple of hours. Most of the Pokemon had started napping. It was quiet for the longest time.

"Grrrr!" Grim had stood up and was looking and growling in the direction that Raz, Kira, Toxeon, and Kirlia. This sudden action surprised them all.

"What is it Grim?" Raz was at the side of his partner as quickly as he could be. Some of the others started waking up at the dog's growl as it grew louder.

"Doom doom hound houndoom!" He started barking angrily into the darkness beyond the others. Raz had to hold him back from running after whatever it was.

"Growl!" A different bark burst from the darkness as a Growlithe jumped into the field they were in. It looked just as angry as Grim was.

"Why is he so upset?" Kira had joined in holding their dog back from the new one.

"Houndoom and Arcanine used to battle each other in packs for land. The rivalries still stand when they see each other. I think Grim is just trying to protect our area from it." The 2 holding him started losing their grip.

"Doom doom do-_atch it! You don't belong here pup, now get out of here! They can't hold me forever."_Grim's words became more and more clear to Raz while holding the dog.

"Yeah, he wants it out of here. I heard him some how. He's mostly warning it to get away before he gets loose." The dog looked at his trainer after hearing what he had said about understanding the dog now. With his attention distracted, Kira changed positions and was now in front of him, holding him in a kind of hug to try and calm him.

"Please calm down. You don't have to worry about it. Please just calm down." She looked up to see her words having an affect. Slowly, Grim stopped trying to get away and sat down, putting his head in the girl's lap as she continued to pet him. The Growlithe stayed poised to jump at him though, before Rayne was between them.

"How perfect. I was raised with some Arcanine that were great friends. Now I can get a Growlithe and get one to be friends with now. Go Aron." The little steel poke came out from behind her and was staring at the dog. It looked at it's opponent and let loose a feral roar. The tinier Pokemon just kept looking at it without flinching.

"Rollout!" The poke rolled into a ball and dashed at her target. Without hesitating, Growlithe jumped into the air and let a large Flamethrower attack out of it's mouth. Aron could feel the heat and narrowly avoided the blast.

"Let's try our new move, Dig-Out." As soon as she heard her trainer, she dug a hole into the earth. Growlithe, unable to see it's opponent, just looked around for her. It was too late when the rumble started from underneath. Aron came up at a full-speed roll and hit the belly of the dog, sending it sprawled on the ground.

"Great job girl. Ultra-ball, go!" Rayne threw the ball and watched as the dog went into it. It shook for a bit before the red light went off and Growlithe was caught. She picked up the ball and let her knew poke out, as Grim let out a whine in protest from behind.

_"I don't like that thing. He smells like what I was taught to fight." _He looked up at Raz for help.

"Sorry buddy. I'll try and keep him away from you. That's the best I can do." The others looked at Raz as he spoke to Grim. Rayne and Zion hadn't heard him say he understood the poke now.

"How do you know it's a boy?" Rayne looked from the trainer to his dog and back.

"Grim said it's a male. He also doesn't like him, so we shouldn't make them come out near each other."

"Alright, but I'm not gonna force him to stay in if your dog is out. In fact, I'm gonna nickname him also. I'll call you...Rath." She looked at the ball in her hands as she spoke the poke's new name to him. She then let out a gasp as Aron began glowing. Her body grew longer and she became more agressive looking.

"Lairon." She looked at her new body before rolling up and bouncing happily. Rayne caught her and hugged the newly evolved poke.

"You did it girl. No way we'll lose when we get to that gym." She rubbed the new steel on her partners back and spoke more encouraging words to her. Grim was watching, but his eyes were still on the newly occupied pokeball.

_"This is gonna be a long trip." _Grim let out one more whine while Kira continued to pet and soothe him.

--

"So your saying we were near the road the whole time. I'm gonna kill you!" The morning after the long day of new Pokemon, Rayne had went to look for a road or path to follow. After 15 ft south, she stumbled out onto a road just above Fuchsia. Zion saw her going that way, and took off toward the town with Omnivee on his tail.

"It was just a joke." She was quickly catching up while the others watched.

"It was only a matter of time until someone figured it out. Ready to see a city Art?" Raz had decided to let Articuno out and have her sit on his shoulders. She nudged him to say she was ready. "How about you 3"

Kira had Toxeon out beside her and Kirlia was on her other side holding the girl's hand. She just looked at him and nodded. This was the first town where there were no more secrets between them all.

_"Family." _Kirlia looked up to her sister as she said it, and smiled while squeezing the girls hand. _"Ready for your next gym battle? We will do great you know." _

"You know I'm not. Let's do it." they headed off after the rest of their group, with sounds of Zion being beaten-up in the distance, and dread of the soon battle in their hearts.

--

--

A/N: Well, I was honestly insipered to do this chapter sooner in response to the, well, response to the last chapter. Hope you enjoyed it, and I'm working on the next one now, so see ya when I see ya. Remember to review please.


	20. Fun With Poison

"Tails." The group was gathered outside the gym. They had decided that Raz would team with Kira and Zion with Rayne. Raz had just flipped a coin to see who would face Koga and Janine first while the others went to the Safari Zone. Zion had called it in the air.

"Heads, we go first." Raz had a smile as he winked at Kirlia for helping control the odds. Zion just dropped his head as he lurched off with Omnivee and Rayne behind him. When they were out of range, the others started laughing for their little trick.

"You think he'll be upset if he figures it out?" Kira was standing by the door as Raz opened it for the ladies.

"I doubt it. He's gonna be happy after today, I think. He'll probably have enough Water Pokemon caught to start an aquatic zoo." He could envision the boy with all those poke's. When they got inside, they could see the leaders waiting in the center of the arena.

_"Be careful, they have traps between us and them. I can see them through their eyes." _The little dancer poke jumped into her partners arms, and sent the floor plans into his mind.

"Thanks. Should be easy. Hop on my back Kira." He knelt down to let the girl climb on. When she was too hesitant, he picked her up and slung her around. "Hold on you 2." Kirlia had moved to holding on to his head from behind.

With 2 giant steps, the boy jumped over the floor as a trap made the floor drop. He was instantly sprinting after landing to avoid the floor as it crumbled from behind them. When they were safely on the gym floor, Raz set the girls down as he knelt to catch his breath. The leaders applauded the boy.

"No one ever did that before. Most people fall their first time through." Koga was at their side, extending a hand to Raz. He took it after smirking a little.

"I take it most people don't have a Pokemon that is both Psychic and hate being in their ball." As he said it, his partner jumped up on his head and held a hand out to the gym leader. He just laughed while shaking the poke's hand.

"Well, since you made it past our trap, your challenge is accepted. It will be a no time limit team match with 3 Pokemon per member. The way it will work is kind of like rounds. When one team members poke falls, they wait for their partner to either beat both opponents, or to also fall. Then both sides recall and try again. First to win twice, gets the victory." He was next to his daughter on one side of the field in an instant as Raz and Kira went to the opposite side. Kirlia was right behind them after figuring out the order Raz had planned.

"No problem on our end. Let's go Grim." He threw the dog's ball in the air as it burst forth in a show of light. He was roaring as he hit the ground and stared at the leaders.

"We can do this. Do your best Dragonair." Kira tossed her poke's ball up as he came out the same way Grim had. He was just waiting however, like he was bored already.

"Two tough opponents. Let's show the power of Poison dear. Go Crobat." Koga's bat looked similar to Raz's, except it was twice as big. It looked at Grim as the dog roared again, but didn't flinch from the challenge.

"We got this. It's time Ariados." As her spider poke came out, Raz let a smirk cross his face.

"Let Grim get the bug. He can destroy it pretty quickly. Dragonair can take the bat pretty handily as well." He winked as she looked at him and nodded to his plan.

"If you are quite done, Ariados, use Poison Sting on the mutt." The female leader's spider was up int the air on a web as it shot a barrage of poisonous needles at Grim. The dog just barked once and let out a burst of flame that incinerated the stings, and kept on toward the web. Just before it could hit, Crobat was between them with a shield up.

"Good going Crobat. Now, use Wing Attack and put the dog down." As he ordered, the bat's wings started glowing as he dove straight at Grim.

"I don't think so, Dragonair use Wrap!" The dragon was off and had Crobat wrapped before anyone knew what to do. Looking at the trapped opponent gave Raz an idea.

"Have Dragonair come down and open one end that's facing Grim. He's resistant to fire, so we can have a point-blank Flamethrower that won't hurt either on our side."

"Ok. Dragonair, fly down with it and open a side to Grim." The dragon was in front of the dog while Ariados was still waiting for a command. The dog already knew what to do though, and had a flame going as soon as the opening was wide enough.

"Use Bite Ariados! We need to get Crobat out of there!" The spider jumped from it's web and was diving dead-on toward the dragon.

"Dragonair, use Flamethrower on it while it can't dodge!" He turned his head and caught the bug when it was close to 3 feet away. When the flames stopped from both poke's, Crobat and Ariados were both out.

"Good job, but that was just a warm-up round." Koga and Janine gave mock bows as all the members were recalled. "Round 2, go Venomoth." It was widely known that Koga had the strongest known Venomoth, and the scars on it's wings as it burst from the ball were signs of a hard past. Janine had a ball in her hand and as she threw it, let out a sigh.

"Time to get a win for our side. Let's do it Venomoth." Hers was much more beautiful then her fathers. It had no scars and was a bright pink next to the duller gray and purple.

"More bugs to squish. Oh well, let's end this Kirlia." His little partner danced out to her spot on the field as she looked at both of the enemies.

"Time to do our best Gallade." Kira released her oldest partner who came out right next to Kirlia. They nodded to each other before getting in a battle stance.

"Since you were so kind to go first last time, Kirlia, use Psybeam on Koga's!" The poke released a beam of energy straight at the moth. The pink one watched for a second before moving between the blast and it's target. A shield was up and the beam was stopped dead.

"Gallade, get the pink one out of the way with a Slash." Her partner was dashing at his target while building energy into his bladed arms.

"Thank you for getting close enough for us to do this easily. Venomoth, use Sleep Powder." As it started flapping and releasing the powder to take Gallade out, the target of it found he couldn't stop in time. Just before he hit the wall of dust, a flash moved him back to the other side of the arena. He looked up and saw Kirlia was holding on to his chest.

_"Can't have you...falling...asleep...on..." _She was out before finishing. When she had teleported in, the dust had covered her before she got them away. Raz looked on for a few more seconds before going out to retrieve his partner so the match could resume.

"You did well girl." He took off his hoodie and made a little bed for her to sleep off the affect on. Under it, he was wearing a silver shirt with a black pokeball symbol covering the right half.

"Gallade, use Psycho Cut on the pink one." The battle resumed as her partner took off again. This time, he saw as another cloud of powder came out, and he jumped over it before nailing the moth from above. It was out as the poke touched down and back flipped away. It was down to Koga's and Kira's Pokemon as Janine recalled her Venomoth.

"Well, this is interesting. I do believe your the first to push us to this point since we teamed up. We must end this round though. Venomoth, use Psybeam." The moth's forehead began to glow as it charged a powerful blast. Gallade jumped at it with arms glowing.

"I'm sorry, did I say Psybeam, I meant Hyper Beam." A burst of pure energy hit Gallade as he had closed the gap. The blast sent him flying across the field. He was laying still for a few seconds, before he started getting up. After a few more seconds though, he fell back down.

"You did your best Gallade." Kira's eyes were a little wet as she recalled her oldest partner. Raz just patted her on the back with a reassuring smile. She nodded as they watched the leaders pull out their last pair.

"Time for the finals. Go Muk."

"Go Weezing." Both were staring at the pair. Muk was continuously reforming his body while Weezing just watched, waiting.

"Time for you first battle, Bellossom." The poke was dancing around as she was called out from her ball.

"We can do this Absol." As she reared back to throw her partners ball, a burst of light from her belt shot out. Toxeon was on the field next to Bellossom instantly.

"What an unusual poke. Rules are rules though, and it must fight." Koga was staring as Toxeon mimicked Muk in oozing down before reforming her body.

"No." He looked up to see Raz glaring at the man. "She was born recently, and it would be dangerous for her to battle." He looked at the leaders et on his decision.

"I'm sorry to hear that, but like I said, rules are rules. Muk, Sludge Bomb that thing." As the giant pile of ooze hurled a boulder of sludge at the baby, she just stared in horror at it.

"No!" Kira called out as Raz took off to the baby as the bomb got closer.

--

"Alright, mark Staryu off the list." Zion watched as another Safari-ball vanished in a beam of light. Rayne was next to him with a pad and paper, marking a line through the poke's name.

"That make 10 Pokemon. You've gotten Staryu, Psyduck, Barboach, Corsola, Remoraid, Sharpedo, Quagsire, Horsea, Azurill, and a Chinchou. Nice haul if I say so." She set down the paper as she stood to stretch. She had decided not to bother with catching anything since she had a full team now.

"I guess. Maybe we should head back and see how they did with the gym. I bet they beat them without any trouble." Zion stood also, collapsing his fishing gear. They walked out and looked around for the Poke-Center.

"Isn't it next to the gym?" Rayne pointed toward a building behind the gym that looked like the most likely place. After walking toward it for a bit, they saw the symbol on the roof and started running toward it.

"I hope Omnivee and the others are doing alright." The boy remembered that they left their Pokemon to rest while they were at the zone. Their upbeat mood was interrupted when they entered, however. Kira was sitting in a chair with Kirlia asleep next to her left and Toxeon whimpering in her arms. They also saw the gym leaders sitting across from her.

"Kira, what's wrong?" Rayne was next to the girl in an instant. She could see tears had just ended from her eyes.

"Raz got hurt in our match. Toxeon accidentally popped out, and when an attack was called on her, Raz jumped between it and her. He took a full forced Sludge Bomb to the back. They said he'll be fine after some rest and the medicine got the poison from his system, but we lost the match because of it." She started petting Toxeon as she began whimpering again.

"You 2 lost?" Zion was looking at the girl in shock. _"But if Raz lost, and he never loses, how can we win?"_ He was thankful that the Psychic poke was out and unable to hear his thoughts.

"It's all my fault. Maybe he could have won with one of you as his partner." New tears started forming as Kira put her head on Rayne's shoulder.

"No talk like that miss. You did great in the match. Your partner just needs some training to not do that again. You may have still had a chance if he had let your odd poke take the attack instead of the stupid move he pulled." Koga was trying to sound comforting, but Kira stared at him before standing with a huff.

"He was just trying to protect a new born from getting hurt. When he gets better, you'll see us again when we win that badge of yours." She picked up the sleeping Kirlia before heading to the room she was told to be Raz's. The others just watched as she walked off.

"Never saw her get mad before. Maybe she should eat some cake. That makes everyone happy." Zion was gone instantly toward the cafeteria after making himself hungry.

"What company that boy keeps." Janine was up and heading toward where the boy had gone. Koga just looked at Rayne who was directly across from him. After a few seconds, they stood and went in different directions.

"See ya tomorrow leader." Koga turned to see the girl go into the cafeteria.

"It's gonna be a fun few days." Koga was already designing traps for the next pair in his head as he went toward the gym to set them up.

--

--

A/N: Wow, Raz's first loss. How will the team recover from this as he recovers at the center? Find out Next time. Review at will.


	21. Whoa!

"Hey." Raz was laying on his stomach as a Chansey rubbed some type of ointment on his back. Kira saw him flinch from it every few seconds. She set Kirlia down on a couch in the room and let Toxeon down on the floor next to Grim, whose pokeball was laying across the room. "He broke out when he heard I got hurt from the nurse."

"He cares about you a lot then." The girl began scratching behind the dog's ear, making his tail wag in pleasure. "The others are back. They went to eat with Janine."

"You look worse then I do. Are you alright?" Raz was sitting up now and looking at the tear-streaked cheeks of his friend. She started to wipe away new tears as she saw the effort it took him to not scream from the pain. His eyes were tight and his jaw clenched as the Chansey finished up and left.

"No, I'm fine. I just thought things would be worse. Joy said the poison would be in your system for a few days, causing some pain. I guess I didn't know how strong you really were." She looked at his face as she spoke. His eyes were soft as she finished and he ushered her to come closer. When she got next to him, he pulled her into a hug.

"Don't waste you tears on someone like me. I dove between an attack that I knew would hurt, so it's all really my fault. As far as the poison goes, it burns like hell, but I can manage." He pulled her away and smiled while still holding his mouth tightly from a wave of the pain. She began crying again, and he just laughed a bit as he pulled her back again.

"Look at me. How did I come here to try and comfort you, but you end up comforting me?" She was laughing the whole time she spoke about how it ended up to this point. Raz was shaking a little as he laughed it off also.

When they pulled apart again, they looked at the other's eyes as the laughter eased off. Slowly, their smile were softer, and even the Pokemon were watching them. Kirlia had awoken half-way through their talking and was on the edge of her seat as she watched the 2 not move. She, always willing to take things on herself to start, decided to make them do what they both wanted. She used her powers and tripped Kira into Raz, and made sure their lips went together when he caught her. She instantly pulled away.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean-" He put his finger to her lips and stopped her from talking. After a few deep breathes, she looked up to see him smiling.

"That was more comforting then you know. I don't even feel the pain on my back." He continued to look into her eyes as she let a warm smile go across her now red face. He lifted her head and bent down to her. Grim put his paws over Toxeon's eyes while Kirlia opened the door and the 3 left.

_"I've done my best with these 2, now it's all up to how they work these things out." _The Psychic looked at Grim, who just nodded in agreement.

_"It'll go well. I could hear how both their hearts leaped in rhythm at your little trick." _Both looked at the baby with them, who was acting very confused.

_"Why was mommy acting like that with the nice man?" _She looked at the older Pokemon who were trying not to laugh at the little one's innocence.

_"Hungry?"_ Toxeon jumped at the thought of eating and was running after Grim who ran toward the cafeteria door. Kirlia let out a sigh and opened it for them.

--

"You alright man?" Zion was geared for his match with a plan already forming. He decided to visit Raz before he went to the gym since his bud was ordered to stay in bed.

"Better then you know." Raz had a smirk that had been on his face since the previous night when him and Kira had discussed some important stuff. The fact that he had kissed her, and she returned the feelings helped him greatly.

"I can see that. What happened, you get some good cake or something?" Raz chuckled before he looked at the boy again.

"I guess it would be alright to tell you." He took a deep breath and then looked at his friend.

--

"He kissed you?!" Rayne was at a loss for words as she sat next to Kira in the cafeteria for breakfast. She had saw Zion go to see Raz before they headed to the gym.

"Yeah, and it was odd. Truth be told, it was my first real kiss." She felt as her cheeks blushed to a bright red. The girl next to her just started laughing at it.

"Of course it was odd. You have obviously been in love with him for a while. Every time we camp out, both Zion and I watch as you stare at him. I assume you enjoyed it then." She nudged the girl who turned even redder.

--

"Of course I did. I may not have shown it, but I've always felt this way about her. How could I not? She's so sweet and nice to the Pokemon. Her and Kirlia have both said they were sisters even. She's beautiful and funny. She's the perfect girl." Raz was standing with a scarlet streak across his face as he read off Kira's qualities. Zion just watched him.

"Well, the perfect part of a girl. She isn't exactly a whole girl in the physical since, not that it really matters." He spoke the end quickly when his friend started to glare at the younger boy.

"No, it doesn't. She's has a horrible past, but I'm going to make sure her future is better by leaps and bounds." He was looking past the room surrounding him with pure energy at his deceleration.

"And me and Rayne will be there to help you. Not now though, we have a match. Time to wash away some poison." Zion was opening the door, but stopped when he grabbed the knob to look back.

--

"I'm happy this happened for you 2. You really do look great together." Rayne was next to the entrance of the center when she saw Zion and Raz come out of the room. When the 2 got next to the girls, Zion yelled something the others didn't understand. Omnivee and the other Pokemon that were out came running. Kirlia jumped into the arms of her trainer as Toxeon did the same with her "mother". Even though they were holding their partners, the 2 held a hand out for the other as their friends walked out and headed for the gym.

"So, want to get something to eat before Joy sees you out of bed again?" He nodded at the girl suggestion and lead the way, still holding her hand the whole time.

--

"Hmm, no one has ever used that method to dodge my traps." Koga and Janine watched as their new opponents jumped off the back of Zion's Gyarados. He recalled the serpent before they took their place on one end of the arena.

"I've been told the rules were explained to you, correct?" He looked at his daughter who nodded.

"We understand. The real question you need to ask is, are you ready?" Rayne held a ball out and was spinning it on her pointer finger, while Zion tried and failed to do the same trick.

"Always ready for a win. Go Crobat." He released the bat from the ball he was holding. It had burn marks from a match that hadn't fully healed.

"Time for round 1 Ariados." Her spider also showed signs of recent burns, but these were few in number. Both looked full of energy and power though.

"Alrighty then. Go Lairon!" Her newly evolved partner came out and looked straight at the opponents. She let out a growl and waited for an order.

"Let's do it Staryu." He tossed the Safari-ball up and his newest poke came out spinning around.

"Very well, round 1 can start. Wing Attack the star Crobat!" It was off instantly flying straight for the target who was just standing there.

"Use Rapid Spin to counter Star!" It began spinning quickly before heading for the on-coming bat. They collided in the air, but neither was knocked back very far.

"No reason for the boys to have all the fun. Ariados, use Poison Sting on the over-grown bug." When the spider jumped onto a web it made, it started firing needles of poison at it's target. Lairon just watched as they bounced off her metal body.

"Nice try. Let's give them a prize for their attempt. How about a Rock Tomb!" Her partner rolled into a ball and began bouncing. After a few, she jumped and slammed into the roof, causing a bunch of big pieces fall all around the arena. One of them caught Crobat in the air as Staryu continued to spin, but took off toward the web. After a quick pass through it, Ariados began free-falling to the ground. The web that had been around it had tangled and trapped the poke in the fall.

"Return her before she hits the ground." Koga looked as his daughter complied and caught her partner before she hit the ground. He then turned to recall Crobat. "Round 1 goes to you, but don't get cocky. Round 2 will be a lot tougher." The leaders pulled out a different ball and tossed it at the same time as Janine did. Both produced a Venomoth, and Zion could feel the power from them.

"Time to squish us some bugs Rath." Rayne released her newest partner who let out a roar upon stepping foot on the ground.

"End it quickly and we'll get cake Omnivee. All you can eat!" Zion felt a whoosh past his legs as his partner was already sprinting across at the opponents. Rath took off after her as he built up a fire in his chest.

"Sleep Powder." Both leaders called for their partners to use the same attack so the opponents couldn't get close.

"Fire Blast!" Both called for their partners to use the strongest fire attack they knew. As soon as the flames hit the powder that surrounded the bugs, it ignited and exploded. Both fell to the ground. The leaders were in shock as they watched Janine's pink one try to get up and got to the other's side. After a few seconds, the female leader went out and helped her partner get to her goal before it passed out. They let them stay there for a second before recalling them.

"Congratulations. You have done what your friends could not and have won the Soul Badge. I guess we know who the better team is." Koga tossed the 2 badges at them like they were ninja stars. As they caught them, Zion looked up at the other pair. When he spoke, his voice was not happy and light like normal. Rayne recognized it as the same way he talked when he fought her and when he was against Surge.

"You have no idea what your talking about. We won because they told us how you fought them. They were the reason for this win, and I probably wouldn't have used the 2 I did. You had better odds if they hadn't said anything from watching the way you 2 battled. They'll show you tomorrow." He eased some before looking down at his partner. "Time to go eat cake and brag about how we won and Raz lost buddy." The pair were on the back of Gyarados as soon as he came out. Rayne joined them with Rath as the group flew out through the hole they had made in the roof.

--

"I knew you could do it." Raz was in the cafeteria with them as Zion and Omnivee shoveled down more and more cake. Rayne was next to them, looking disgusted at their eating habits before digging into a giant piece of pie she had. Kira and Kirlia just snickered at them all.

"Of course we did it. I had to step up so I could finally say I beat what the great Raz didn't." He let a cocky smile cross his face as he looked at Raz.

"Care to battle me then? If you can beat what I can't, then you must be able to beat me." He squeezed Kira's hand a bit as they saw Zion go from cocky to sickly in a second.

"I would, but since it's so late and we just ate and all. Plus, Omnivee is pretty tired, right?" He looked down at his partner who was looking at Kirlia. The little dancer gave a "bring it" motion with her hand before the taunted poke let out a yawn and laid down on the seat. Everyone cracked up as they saw Zion and Omnivee dodge out of the match. Even the boy himself laughed a little.

"We need to rest you up for tomorrow anyways. Joy called the gym earlier and Koga and Janine were given strict orders that no traps were to be set. We just have to go in and have the match." Kira looked at her partners eyes as he smiled at her.

_"I'm gonna have to start blocking your random thoughts of that kiss, aren't I?" _Kirlia looked up at her sister with a sigh as she started giggling. Then she let out a yawn of her own and curled up in the girls lap before she started to go to asleep.

_"Night little sister, we got a big day tomorrow."_

_"She wants to be in the battle you know."_

_"Can she win?"_

_"I think so. I've seen that Articuno wants to fight also, and Raz is gonna give her a shot. It's up to you on if you let her though." _With one more yawn, the little poke was asleep. Kira was looking at Raz soon after, and sighed as he nodded to her. Kirlia had let him in on their little conversation.

_"I guess we'll see how good Toxeon can do tomorrow."_

--

_--_

A/N: Ah, first kiss from first love. How sweet. I honestly felt the time had come to make them an official couple. Hope you all enjoyed, and please review to let me know what you think of them. In case I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night.


	22. Toxeon's Moment of Glory

"Go Muk!" Koga's Pokemon hit down and did it's constant habit of reforming it's body.

"Time to win this Weezing!" Janine tossed her poke's ball and released the 2-headed gas ball. Raz and Kira looked at them from the other end of the arena.

"Let's do it Articuno!" The baby bird came out and spread her wings before a shock-wave of air burst from her body in all directions, causing a pressure in the arena.

"We can do this Toxeon!" Kira's baby came out and stared at Muk with intent to make her "mother" proud.

"A legendary bird. I never thought I'd see the day a trainer had 1. No matter though, Muk, Sludge Bomb the bird." As the big ooze hurled a boulder of sludge, Raz flinched a little. It didn't take him long to recover though.

"Articuno, Ice Beam the bomb!" She shot a beam that looked like blue lightning at the ball, turning it to ice and making it drop directly to the ground. The bird then started flying up and looking around.

"Weezing, Smog the bird out of the sky!" The big gas ball released a flood of black smoke up in the air. It started feeling the arena and as it reached Articuno, she started coughing. Unable to control the coughs, she started falling.

"Toxeon, turn to ooze and catch her!" As Kira called for it, the baby turned into a smaller ooze then Muk and took off to the fall point. When she was directly below her partner, she expanded outward while reforming her legs, creating a trampoline that caught the bird, undamaged.

"Nice trick." Raz looked at his partner with honest surprise on his face. She just blushed away.

"We were practicing what she could do yesterday. Watch this, Toxeon, Acid Rain time!" The baby nodded before turning back into her goo state and taking off toward the opponents. When she got to a few yards away, she jumped into the air and started expanding again. When she was fully stretched out, her body covered the entire side of the arena. After a few seconds, bubbles started forming all over, and when they started bursting, it looked like it started raining on the foes.

As the downpour continued, they began smoking. Weezing was flying around to try and get it off, but since the rain was everywhere around, he was unsuccessful. Muk just looked on and ignored it. When the attack stopped, Toxeon was back on the ground next to Articuno, who was chirping happily. On the other side, Weezing was still trying to stop the burning.

"Let's make an odds change Weezing. You know what to do." It looked at Janine for a second before flying as quick as it could at it's opponents. When it got between the 2, it started glowing. Toxeon jumped away just in time to avoid the Explosion, but Articuno was caught in the attack. When the dust settled, both her and Weezing were down.

"Looks like it's 1-on-1 now. Muk, swallow that thing up!" The giant ooze ball went toward the baby goo-fox as she landed. It expanded a little before covering the target completely. She started to jump around under the thing while the ooze continued to stick to her, burning wherever it latched on. After a little bit, she stopped struggling and sat still.

"Toxeon! If you can hear me, turn into the ooze form and try to get out that way!" She called as loud as she could, with worry for her baby in her heart. Toxeon heard her and did as she was told. In her ooze state, the goo that had clung to her let go and the burning ended. She still couldn't find a crack to get through though. After a few seconds, an idea struck her.

Muk was feeling for the change in the opponent under it when he started to shudder. It's body began growing a little notch on the side that continued expanding. As it stopped feeling whatever was making him react like that, the notch broke off and headed straight toward Kira. When it got close, it started to form a body. When done, Toxeon looked at her for a sign of approval.

"That was amazing. Now let's win this thing baby." Toxeon jumped and yelped happily before turning serious again. She stared at the goo-ball and tried to think of how to beat him. Kira was doing the same thing.

"Muk, use Sludge Bomb and end this match." A ball was formed quickly and hurled at the little one. This gave the fox an idea. She leaped up and landed on the bomb in midair. She looked at it before stretching her body around it. She started pulling against it's force and when that didn't work, she started making them roll in the air. When they hit the ground, the ball goo they had become started rolling after Muk.

When they got close, she stopped but opened up and made the bomb shoot back at the thrower. When it hit, the force was twice what it was when the shot was fired. Muk was steam-rolled by the attack and was knocked unconscious before Toxeon had her body fully reformed.

"We did it!" Kira caught her baby when she jumped to her began licking the girls face with all 3 points. Raz let out Articuno again before picking the now awake bird up and hugging it.

"You both did well. I know that you'll do better the next time we battle someone. My little legend." He started smoothing out the feathers of his baby as she chirped happily at the attention he was giving her. Koga and Janine walked over slowly, holding a badge for each of them.

"Very nicely done. You have both earned the Soul Badge. We hope you do well in the other gym battles you go through." With a slight bow when the badges were given, both leaders disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"I know we will." Raz looked over at his partners who were now looking at their badge.

--

"Wait, you only had 1 round with them?" Zion was watching as Raz and Kira ate with Kirlia, Toxeon, and Articuno beside them. The 2 babies were enjoying food that was made to make them bigger and stronger. Kirlia was just eating on her favorite type of chicken dumplings.

"Koga said that since we already had the first 2 rounds before, we should just do the final round since none of the Pokemon that had been called out were injured at all. Gallantry pays off again." Raz watched as everyone started laughing. Kira poke him in his still sore back before speaking.

"Yeah well, that gallantry almost killed you." She said it half giggling as he flinched from her finger.

"I'd say it was still worth it." He reached around and grabbed her hand before pulling her onto his lap and kissing her surprised face. She just leaned against his chest and let her mind go when she couldn't think of anything to say. The others were laughing again, except the babies who looked up at Kirlia.

_"What did daddy do to her?" _Articuno looked at Toxeon as she spoke to her friend when Kirlia just giggled a little more.

_"Is mommy ok?" _They continued to watch the pair with eyes wondering. Kirlia eventually reached over and pulled out Grim's ball. When she released him out, he was shown everything that had happened through the psychic. He was laughing at the little ones the same way Kirlia had.

_"Can you help me with what to say?"_ Grim nodded before he moved to look at both the babies. After a few seconds, he looked at their bowls which were empty now and then back at them.

_"Want some more food?" _Both forgot about their questions and jumped down, nodding to the big dog. As they walked off, both Raz and Kirlia began laughing at how the dog had done that. Kirlia looked at the boy as he just smirked.

"I understand Grim now, remember? I've always heard Articuno, I guess since she sees me as her parent." He looked down at Kira who nodded to he had said to the little poke.

"I understand Toxeon the same way. It's sweet how she sees me as her mother." She put her head back into the boys chest as she watched the trio that had just left. After a few more minutes, she let out a big yawn.

"It's been a long day and we could all use some rest. I'll take care of Toxeon and bring her to your room when she finishes." He let the girl up after another quick peck and Rayne stood also.

"I'm gonna hit it also. Come on little love bird." She took the other girl's arm and led her out while Omnivee and Kirlia followed. Raz turned back as they left and continued eating his burger that had been forgotten. Zion let him eat before he looked at the boy.

"I got a call from mom today. She's in Saffron and said we need to get their quickly. She even sent tickets for us to be flown there by her own plane company. The jets they have are awesome, fully stocked with cakes and desserts from all over. She wants us to go this way so we can be in the city before noon." He looked at his bud with pleading eyes. He knew the answer would be no on most occasions.

"Sure. If it's that important to Nami to see us that quickly, then we should accept." The boy across from him was shocked with his mouth hanging wide open at what he heard. Raz saw this and decided to clear things for him. "Nami was the first to know about Kira and her past. She took care of her, and I know Kira wants to see her again. Besides, the idea of walking with my back still on fire half the time doesn't sound like a good idea."

"OkI'llgotellthegirlsaboutit, thenI'mgonnagotobedandrestupforthetrip.!" The boy was out in a flash. Raz just turned to look at the babies who were asleep on grim with empty bowls next to them. With one quick sigh, he got up and lead the trio to the rooms to get some sleep.

"What have I unleashed this night?"

--

"So why did Nami want us so quickly?" Raz was helping Kira out of the plane as she questioned Zion, who was finally able to answer. Him and Omnivee had eaten almost the entire cake supply the plane had. The boy still didn't answer, but pointed to the city. When they saw it, the noticed pink, red, and white balloons and streamers all over. Nami was also visible as she was atop her Gyarados heading for the group.

"It's about time you got here. I already signed you all up for it and we're going shopping today for outfits you can wear." She jumped off her poke before looking at the group.

"Signed us up for what?" Kira looked at the woman, who had noticed then that the girl was holding Raz's hand. Her aggravated mood instantly lifted.

"Didn't Zi tell you. I wanted you here because tomorrow is the start of the 5th Annual Couples Tournament. I signed so that Zi will partner with Rayne, and your with Raz, and I see it was the right move." The girl instantly turned red as Raz chuckled a little bit. She reached their interlocked hands behind him and gave a little poke. He flinched at the touch that burned his back.

"What are you gonna do when that doesn't work anymore?" He was teasing as he pulled their arms from behind him and moved them so she couldn't move hers that wrapped around her body.

"I'll think of something. Maybe I can just have Toxeon refresh it every so often." She giggled a little before he bent and kissed her.

"You can try, but I don't think I'm stupid enough to get hurt like that again."

"We'll see." And she looked into his eyes, forgetting that she was also with the rest of the group. At some point, she could hear Nami cough, making her turn to see her watching.

"If you 2 are done, we do need to hurry and get ready." She started off toward the biggest building they could see.

"I thought the tournament wasn't until tomorrow though."

"It is, but the dance is tonight. We have to make you all look stunning."

--

--

A/N: Wow, Ive been working overtime on these. Oh well, you guys keep reading and reviewing, and I'll keep writing. Now time for a lame movie line to exit by. "Good night Gracie."


	23. The Dance of Gold and Silver

"Dad, your here also?" Zion watched while Nami whispered something into his fathers ear before leading the girls off and leaving just him and Raz with the gentleman.

"Of course I'm here. Your mother and I are former champions. We held it for the first 3 years. Since we were beaten last year, we get to judge the matches. Now, let me look at you boys. It feels like forever since we last were together. How are ya Raz?" The older man smiled at the boy who was still watching after the girls. He turned his head at the end of it though and smiled back.

"Doing just fine Mr. Hightide. Been busy keeping your son out of trouble." Zion gave a mock glare at him before his dad touched his shoulder.

"Yeah, he is a handful. Please though, call me by my first name. All my friends do."

"What is your first name? I've never heard it said."

"It's kinda funny really. Nami means wave as you know. My first name is actually Spark. My parents were electric Pokemon fanatics. I guess it works for my new job." He began leading the boys through a department store with various suits and other fancy clothing.

"What's your new job dad? And why does mom think I'm going to wear anything in this place? Suits are stupid and uncomfortable." Zion looked at a pink and black suit next to him and cringed away.

"Your mother said that you had to be in a suit for just tonight. After that, you can be in your normal clothes. As far as my job, my old war buddy Lt. Surge called looking for someone to take over his gym. I agreed as long as he helped me with it. Raz, can you try this one out, It looks like it would be good on you." He handed the boy an outfit that had a silver jacket, tie, and pants with a black shirt.

"Sure. And congratulations on the leader position, I'm sure your great at it." He took it and went into a dressing room while listening to Zion complain about anything the man held out for him.

--

"You look stunning in that dress my dear." Nami had Kira in a flowing golden gown with a black line across the middle and black gloves that went all the way up, covering the exposed circuits on her upper arm. They had tried almost everything on. When she decided this was the best they had picked, she called her husband to see what Raz had gotten had picked.

"They'll be perfect. What about Zion?" There was no noise on the other end for a few seconds.

_"I can't tell you his. He wants to surprise everyone. He swears it is a suit though. I'd say it's blue though, you know our boy. Speak of the devil, I gotta go hun. Zion, stop jumping into the fish tank." _"click"

"Alright, you can change now. I like what you picked also Rayne hun. The orange should do perfectly for whatever my son has. Now, what to do about this little one?" She picked up a half scarred looking Kirlia before setting her on the counter. Omnivee was watching next to Rayne.

"I think she looks good as she is, but you could probably put something on her head so she looks more elegant." The poke looked at the 2 and smiled thankfully to them.

"I guess. How about this." The older woman put a crown of flowers on her head before stepping back. Kira stepped out and looked at her sister with a pleased expression on her face.

"That looks great Kirlia. I bet all the poke-boys heads turn when they see you." She half teased the poke as she sat next to the other girls. Nami just clicked her tongue for a second.

"Not yet, but she will when we're done. Now we get to go get out faces and nails done. I've made an appointment for all four of us. They do great work with Pokemon as well as humans." The group got up and headed after the older woman after checking out. Omnivee was just watching and being thankful she wouldn't have to go through this silliness.

--

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen, to the 5th Annual Couples Tournament Dance. Tonight is about fun with your Pokemon and that special someone your teamed with. We have a few special guests here tonight. Now making their entrance is the winning couple of the first 3 years. Give a warm welcome to Nami and Spark Hightide."

"The couple made their way up the steps and into the big tent that was erected for the event. Raz and the others watched while everyone clapped for the couple. They had been told to be ready for their entrances afterward, as all competing couples were to do so. He turned to Kira, and started fumbling with something in his pocket. Her appearance, he thought, was of an almost perfect angel.

"Do you trust my judgment Kira?" He listened as the next couple was called.

"Now we have the son of the Hightide's with his partner, give it up for Zion Hightide and Rayne Kasia." As the 2 entered, Nami finally saw what her son had picked.

He was wearing a blue suit with a lighter blue shirt underneath. It would have looked perfect, except he was still wearing sandals and the pants legs were cut to be shorts. The shirt was also cut to be short-sleeved. Most people laughed as he looked odd next to the beautiful orange dress Rayne was in. She heard the snickering and leaned down and kissed the boy on the cheek.

"Ignore them. Your always in your own style, and it works for you." The boy turned scarlet as they continued to walk to his parents.

"Now we have the twin sister to Zion and her partner. These 2 are a power-house couple with the money that can back them, Sara Hightide and Ian Monopolous." The crowd watched as the next 2 entered with Ian in a pure black suit and Sara in a bright red one, with flames up the sides. Her hair was in a bun on the top of her head.

"Of course I do. What do you want?" Kira watched as Raz pulled something shiny out of his pocket.

"Close your eyes." As she did, she felt him touch her hair for a second. After a few more seconds she felt him stop.

"Open them and look." When she did, she saw he was holding a mirror. She could now see what he had done. The right side of her face, which she kept her hair in front of to hide the fact of her metal parts was now held back by a silver hair clip. It was covered in tiny jewels that sparkled in the moon light.

"I know you try and hide it, but when I see you now, your more perfect then when your face is covered. I want everyone to see your perfection." She almost teared up as he kissed her quickly before getting into position. She looked at him for one second before pulling down the gloves and showing the part she normally covered. He laughed before she wrapped her arm around his.

"Now for an interesting couple folks. Neither had a last name until a few days ago, when Mrs. Hightide took care of it for them. He is the former brother to Ian Monopolous and she is the newly adopted daughter to the Hightide family. Please welcome Kira Hightide and, as of his new birth certificate filed by the Hightides, Razal Psychosi."

The 2 were surprised by the announcement, but weren't really shocked Nami would do something like that. As they entered, everyone was in awe. They looked perfect to Nami and the others. They were a little surprised by Kira's hair, but Nami gave an approving smile. They heard as the people whispered as the 2 passed. None of it was bad though, which was amazing to Kira. Raz just leaned toward her.

"Their amazed by your beauty." He gave her a quick peck as they reached Nami and the others. Even Sara stood for a second to look at her new sister.

"I don't think we properly met. My name is Sara." She held out a hand before Ian quickly grabbed and pulled her away.

"Remember, we don't talk to the lesser beings." As they walked off, Nami moved between them and Raz's gaze. His free hand was tightly clenched into a fist that made hi knuckles pop.

"Just ignore him. It was nice to see Sara accept you though. She must want something." Kira moved around and hugged the woman while the thought of what she had just heard came again to her mind.

"Thank you for everything." She looked up at the woman with her golden eyes tearing up again.

"Your quite welcome dear. We always wanted another child anyways." Both her and Spark laughed before they headed for the dance floor. A slow song began playing as they touched it, and the 2 began the traditional first dance.

"Shall we?" Raz looked as Kira shot a panicked glance at the dance floor.

"I've never really danced before." He took her hand and guided them toward the floor. When they stepped out, he moved one of her hands onto his shoulder and held the other one.

"Today will have to go into history as the only time I need to thank my parents for something. I took dance lessons from when I was 2 to the day I left. Just follow my lead." And the 2 danced for a while. Zion and Rayne eventually joined. At some point, they decided to sit and drink something.

"So where is Kirlia? I haven't seen her all evening." Kira took a cup of punch from him while scanning the floor. When she saw what she was looking for, she pointed. Raz followed her fingers line until he saw them also. Gallade was holding the little poke while they joined the humans dancing. They were right next to Spark and Nami, who giggled at the sight of them.

"Why am I not surprised your freak of a Pokemon would try and be human." Raz turned to see Ian sit across the table from him and Kira. Sara was next to him, but was staring off at her parents on the dance floor.

"I thought I smelt something burning, but I guess it was just your brain trying to work." Kira giggled a little as Raz taunted the other boy.

"What's so funny freak? I knew you were odd Rasputin, but not even I thought you would be attracted to such a freaky girl." The boy started laughing as he saw Kira start to look more upset then ever. Raz also saw this, but was showing a very different emotion as he pulled his jacket off.

"I'm going to give you 3 seconds to do one of two things. Either your going to say your sorry to my girlfriend, or your going to start running as fast as you can before I kill you. 1." The other boy smirked as he continued watching the now angry Raz.

"I don't think I'm going to do either. And how dare you make a threat against me. I've got enough power to destroy you."

"2."

"And 3. Your not going to do anything, so stop now."

"He might not, but I will for him." Ian turned just in time to see Zion's fist hit him in the chest, doing no damage at all but hurting the boys hand instead. Rayne looked at it as Zion winced at the pain.

"Your defender is more a loser then you ar-" The taunt ended when Rayne punched the boy and dropped him with one punch to the face. Sara just turned to look at the knocked-out boy before shaking her head and turning back away.

"Ignore what he said Kira. He just likes to goad Raz." Sara smiled a little before getting up and walking toward where a group of Nurse Joy's stood.

"She's right, he does that stuff just to provoke me. You heard everyone talking about how pretty and perfect you are." Raz held the crying girls face in his hand as she looked up at him.

"I know. I'm over being afraid of peoples reactions to me. You, Rayne, and the Hightides are all that matters to me. What I really wonder is why Sara stays with Ian? She seems so nice." Raz looked at the girl who was now informing the nurses what had happened.

"She is nice. I don't think I can tell you why she stays with him. All she ever said was she was after something and that he would help her to get toward it." They both stood then and headed away as one of the Joys came and checked on the still unconscious boy. Zion and Rayne joined them on the dance floor as they danced the rest of the time.

--

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the first round of the Couples Tournament. At the end of 3 rounds, the last team left will face our champions of last year. Now, we will display the matches as randomly chosen on the big screen:

Round 1

Match 1

Ian & Sara

vs

Leon & Kara

Match 2

Adam & Estia

vs

Zion & Rayne

Match 3

Xisin & Kurri

vs

Zantar & Intuit

Match 4

Edward & Brassilina

vs

Razal & Kira

"Now the rules state that these matches are 2-on-2 with no other Pokemon used for the whole tournament. The first you throw out will be the one you use through the whole thing. Now let's watch a the first 2 matches start with our former champs, Nami and Spark Hightide judging."

Ian and Sara stood on one end as their opponents, Leon and Kara got on the opposite side. Nami got to a spot to the side, holding a flag in each hand. Zion and Rayne were on a field next to them, on the same side as their opponents. Adam and Estia were on the other side while Spark stood back-to-back with Nami.

Neither Rayne nor Zion had remembered seeing the Adam guy before. He was wearing a black sleeve-less jacket over a whit tank top with some symbol on it in black. He also had blue pants on that looked loose and easy to move around in. He was staring at them with as his blood-red hair swayed In the wind.

"Begin!" As the announcer called for the match start, all the participants pulled out a ball before tossing it, and beginning the first round.

--

--

A/N: Time for a fun litle tournament. I decided on the pairings based on compatability from how they were described to me. Hope you enjoy as I'll be trying to get this tournament going quickly. Remember to review and tell me how you like it, or hate it, or whatever. See you.  
Same bat-time, same bat-channel.


	24. Round 1 & The Lost Legendary

"And all the trainers have called their partners for this tournament forth. The team of Ian and Sara appear to be using a Magnezone and a Charizard. Their opponents will have a tough time against these 2 heavy-hitters. The team of Leon and Kara's Pokemon are now on the field and are a Haunter and a Mismagius. These are some powerful Ghost Pokemon. An interesting match to be sure, but how does it look on the other side? The team of Zion and Rayne have called out a Wartortle and a Lairon. That's an interesting combo to work with. Their opponents, Estia and Adam are now calling their's out. They will be using a Vulpix and a Skarmory. Let's go to the field as the action starts."

"I want nothing more then to get back at that girl for what she did. We have to win and hope they muster a victory of some kind." Ian looked at Sara through his big sunglasses that covered a blueish bruise on his left eye. "Magnezone, use Thunderbolt on the Haunter."

The evolved form of Magneton let out sparks as it unleashed a bolt from it's magnets. The Haunter faded out and the bolt just passed through.

"Good job Specter, now use a Night Shade in return." The ghost looked at the electric poke and released a wave of negative energy from his mouth. It hit Magnezone and sent it back a few feet.

"Do something besides stand there Sara." Ian stared at his partner, aggravated from the attack hitting his poke.

"Charm, use Flamethrower on the other one." The giant lizard opened her mouth and unleashed a flame at the on-looking Mismagius. Before it hit, the Ghost faded out just as her partner had. When she returned, her trainer was leaping in joy.

"Great move Mismagius, now use Hypnosis on it." Kara pointed at Charm while laughing manically. Her poke let out tiny rings of energy that made the Charizard start drooping, before she was overcome with it and feel over, asleep.

"Now use Dream Eater on it Specter!" As Leon called it, his poke disappeared and the sleeping lizard started cringing in her sleep. When the Haunter returned, he was more full looking with his energy replenished.

"Enough of this. Magnezone, stop goofing off and unleash a Thunder!" The clouds above the arena started darkening as lightning shot across it. Then, without any warning, 2 bolts burst down at the Ghosts. They disappeared again though and dodged this attack just like the others. "Again!"

The electric poke began pelting the floor with bolts of lightning from the sky. Every time it shot though, the target would vanish. "Use a full powered shot on the whole field!"

"What about Charm? She'll be hit by it." Sara looked at her partner who smirked at her worried expression.

"She's just a tool. People don't worry about their tools getting damaged." As he said it, a giant bolt of Thunder began coming downward.

"Fine. Charm, return. We're no longer partners Ian." As her poke was recalled, the bolt hit. When the dust settled from it, both the Ghosts were laughing at the giant magnet.

"Now use a Twin Night Shade!" Both Leon and Kara called the attack while Ian watched Sara walk away. When he turned he saw his poke hit the ground, knocked-out.

"The winners of this match are Leon and Kara with Mismagius and Haunter. They advance to face the winner of the match behind me." Nami held up a green flag that she was holding on the same side as the winning team. The duo high-fived and looked at their partners, who had taken no damage at all from the powerful opponents.

"Good job Specter." The Haunter licked his partner as he laughed.

"You did well also Mismagius. This is gonna be a fun-did you hear that? I know someone said ice-cream. Let's go find some." Leon was about to protest about watching their next opponents until the girl took off while holding his hand and dragging him in her search for the dessert.

--

"Zurtle, use Withdraw again and charge a Skull Bash!" The turtle ducked in just as the Skarmory came down at him with a Wing Attack.

"Faithful, use a Whirlwind on it while it can't defend." The metal bird started flapping her wings faster and faster, making the wind stir around Zurtle. Slowly, the whirl raised the turtle up into the air. "Now use Wing Attack as many times as it takes to end it." The bird started flying at the hovering shell with her wings glowing.

"Lairon, use Dig-Out on that Vulpix." She rolled up before spinning into the ground and digging around beneath the field.

"Airlia, use Flamethrower in the hole to flush it out." The poke let out a little huff at the order before going to the hole and unleashing a flame into it. After a few seconds, she ended it and listened for a sound. The digging had stopped and the Vulpix let out a mock yawn of boredom. She started walking back to her spot, but felt the ground shake beneath her.

Lairon came up glowing red and slammed into the fox. The heat was intense and left a burn on the side that the hot metal body hit. The fox flew a few feet before landing on her feet. She quickly started whimpering as she walked toward her opponent. Each movement shot a wave of pain from her side. After a few steps though, she feel over an started panting.

"Airlia, enough. Return and we'll get you checked out. Funny how our attack helped beat us." As she returned her, she looked and saw her partner's poke flying through the hovering shell quickly before turning and doing the same again.

"Hold out just a little more Zurtle." Zion was beginning to smile as the bird continued her assault.

"Keep it up Faithful." As the bird dove in again, a reddish glow came from the shells head.

"NOW!" When the Skarmory was close, Zurtle's head popped out and drove into the bird. The power was great enough to slam them into the ground. As he got composed and tried to start breathing normal again, they watched as the metal bird didn't even try to get up.

"The winners are Zion and Rayne. They advance to the next round to face Leon and Kara in the 2nd round tomorrow." Spark held up a red flag that was on Zion's team's side. All the trainers recalled their Pokemon before going to the quick drop-off heal area, and allowing the next matches to start. Zion and Rayne got back after dropping off their partners in time to hear the announcer.

"Time to begin the final 2 matches of the first round. On the Nami field we have Raz and Kira facing Edward and Brassilina. Spark will be reffing Xisin and Kurri against Zantar and Intuit. Let's see who will be using what as they pull out their partners. One Pokemon is already on the field. It appears to be trainer Raz's Kirlia, and his partner will be using a Gallade. What a team those 2 will be. Their opponents are now tossing their balls out, and they are a Seviper and a Kadabra. Let's see how this match unfolds."

"Those 2 look oddly familiar." Zion and Rayne were sitting on a bench behind their friends. He was looking at the 2 on the other side of the field. The girl, Brassilina, looked like an old west cowgirl. She even had a pistol visible in her belt. The man, Edward, was just cold looking. He was in a jet black outfit with a hood covering his lower face.

"I know what you mean. Even the guy with his face covered does. Where have I seen those eyes before?" The 2 continued pondering as the match began.

"Kirlia, Psychic on the snake." A purple aura formed around the Seviper and raised it high into the air.

"Now use Psycho Cut on it Gallade." The poke's arms were glowing as he teleported above and slammed into the snake. It hit the ground, but recovered quickly.

"Nice try hun, but you gotta do a lot more to beat us. Kadabra, be a dear and show them how to really use Psychic." The voice of the woman made the 2 sitting behind Raz and Kira try to think harder about when they heard it before. An aura formed and raised Kirlia into the air.

"Well, that's nice and all of you, but I think we would prefer to use one of our more custom moves. Kirlia, how about we do a Tele-Beam?" The poke nodded before disappearing in a teleport. A second later, she appeared and shot a beam at the Seviper before teleporting again and hitting the Kadabra with the same attack. She continued this, never staying still long enough to be caught.

"Let's try a form of that Gallade. Use Teleport with Psycho Cut." As her partner vanished, he appeared and knocked the pair up into the air before teleporting up and hitting both quickly as Kirlia continued her assault. It didn't take long to knock out the pair and let them fall back to the ground.

"The winners are Razal and Kira. They advance to face Xisin and Kurri in the 2nd round tomorrow." Nami looked at the pair as they hugged their poke's.

"What a combo folks. This tournament is just heating up also, so tomorrow will be quite the show. Until tomorrow, have a good evening everyone." As the announcer cut off, the crowd cheered and started dispersing. Raz watched as Kira recalled Gallade and started talking with Zi and Rayne. He turned and headed for his opponents though.

"That was pretty fun. You 2 should train harder for next time." He held out both hands to shake with the 2. They both accepted, and were actually surprised when he pulled the pair in as he whispered to them.

_"I know who you are, and if you come anywhere near Kira, I'll destroy you and the rest of Team Rocket." _He let go quickly before turning and heading for his friends. The 2 looked at him before turning to each other.

"What do we do now hun?" Brass took off her hat and wiped her forehead before returning it.

"We stick to the plan. We strike when they face the champs. Should be easy. Giovanni will be pleased." With that, the 2 left the field as Raz watched them go.

"So, whose ready for a good time tonight. I understand theirs a carnival opened after the tournament matches." Raz took Kira's hand and led as the group went toward the sounds of the festivities starting.

--

"That was the most fun I've ever had." Kira was laying in her bed, taking the clip out and setting it on the nightstand next to it. The group were all in the same room this time with the festival making all the rooms needing to be full. Zion was already fast asleep on the bunk above Rayne. Raz was just sitting on the edge of his bunk above Kira and Kirlia.

"It was pretty fun, but just wait till you experience a Hightide family reunion. That is probably bigger then anything I've ever seen. They hold one every year. We'll have to be back there in a month and a half when it happens. I'm sure Nami's already figured out how to show you off since you are a Hightide now."

The girl let a giggle escape her as she laid down next to Kirlia, who was still barely-awake.

"Your really more of one then I am. They have known you a while longer." Raz let out a yawn as he stretched out in his bed.

"They do invite me every year to it since back when I met that goof-ball. You should have seen the reaction they had about why a member of the much hated Monopolous family was at a Hightide event. When they heard my story though, they all instantly accepted me. I wish you could have met Zion's grandpa on Nami's side. He was a crazy old man, but his eyes were so wise as he told stories of the "lost legendary"."

_"What's that?"_ Kirlia heard and woke a little to hear what this story was about.

"The lost legendary is the story of an unknown Pokemon. He was one of the first that helped create the planet and regions. He created all the fresh waters. The only known description of him was he had 6 tentacles that could control the flow of water.

"As humans and Pokemon began bonding, the legends faded out and became docile. He was different then the others though and stayed out in the open until he met a human woman. He fell in love with her at first sight, and used his powers to give him the form of a human. They were a perfect couple and soon wed. When they had children, they all bore the mark of blue hair and eyes. It was when their first daughter was born that he revealed himself to her.

"She didn't care about it though, and they stayed together for a long time. At some point during this, he learned that when he revealed what he was, he lost the power to change and was forever to be human. He became the lost legendary."

As he finished the story, Kira began imagining such a thing happening. Kirlia fell quickly asleep and let the thoughts of the story fill her dreams. Rayne just looked up at Zion, who snored loudly and broke the deep atmosphere like a sledgehammer, making everyone laugh before falling slowly into sleep.

--

"Target confirmed sir. We will strike just as planned." Eddy held the cell-phone to his head while Brass was playing with some rope.

_"Good. Don't screw up this time, or you'll be volunteering for the next batch of test subjects."_

"Yes sir. We won't fail again." As he hung up, he punched the wall of the alley they were in. "We can't afford to fail again."

--

--

A/N: Round 1 is done and Ian has lost his partner and was defeated. The world is rejoicing. But what about the others? How will the tournament go from here, and who are the champions? All these answers and more on the next chapter of Pokemon: The Razal Effect.


	25. Round 2 & The Champs Revealed

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 2nd round of the tournament where we will see the team of Rayne and Zion against the team of Kara and Leon. In the second field we will see the team of Razal and Kira against the team of Xisin and Kurri. The winners will face off later today for the chance to face the champions at the Grand Stage tonight. Now let's go down to the arena as the matches begin."

"Kirlia, you and Gallade got this." Raz's little partner danced out to where her partner Gallade already stood.

_"Tell me something I don't know." _Raz had noticed his partner was acting more giddy then normal. She had been since the dance.

"Go Garchomp." Xisin threw out a ball and released the big shark-like dragon. "You can do it girl."

"Time for a win Vespiquen." Kurri threw her ball and let out a bee like Pokemon. All were watching the opponents as Nami got into place. Once in her spot, she held up both flags to signal the start.

"Garchomp, Earthquake!" The boy called the attack as soon as the flags dropped and his dragon started stomping and caused the entire are to shake. The quake knocked both Psychic's to the ground.

"Attack Order!" While they were trying to recover, the bee queen released a group of tiny bees that flew at the 2. They recovered enough to dodge out of the way before they got hit.

"Nice moves. Kirlia, use Psybeam on the Garchomp!" A wave of energy burst from her hand and shot straight into the dragons head. After a few seconds the attack cut off and Garchomp stomped dizzily.

"Gallade, Psycho Cut her now!" Kira's partner was running instantly and clipped the target with his glowing arm-blades. When he was back on their side, they both watched as their target shrugged off everything and let out an angry roar.

_"We may be in trouble here." _Gallade looked at the little dancer as they tried to think of something to bring the big girl down. They didn't notice as the queen started making rocks hover around her.

"Power Gem, fire!" The rocks flew at the Psychics and both got hit hard. They were both up and on the defense as they continued trying to figure something out.

_"Wait, I got an idea." _Gallade read her thoughts quickly before nodding at the plan.

"Power Gem again!" More rocks flew from the bee as she fired at the 2. This time they counted on it and each jumped onto a boulder before disappearing. A second later, the bee was hit by her own attack as they teleported behind her.

"No Vespiquen!" The girl cried out to her Pokemon, but the power it's attack had was more then enough to take her out. She soon gave up and recalled the fallen poke. "Oh well, you did good."

"Time to avenge your partner Garchomp. Use Dragon Claw!" She started charging down the field at an incredible speed. Her glowing claw caught Gallade as he shoved Kirlia away from it. The Psychic was hit hard and fell to the ground. Kira knew he was out before he even touched the dirt and recalled him quickly.

"Great going out there. We just have to hope they can do it now." She looked up to see Raz smiling at her.

"We will do it. Kirlia, try to use Hypnosis." The little dancer nodded and then made tiny rings come out of her eyes. The Garchomp, which was incredibly powerful, fell asleep quickly. "Now, start using Calm Mind until your power is surging."

She knelt down and crossed her legs while focusing. Her body lifted as the meditation started filling her body with pure power from around her. After a few minutes, she felt the energy tremble as the dragon woke up. She opened her eyes which were now glowing bright red. She stared down the opponent as it let out another angry roar.

_"Time for you to take a much longer nap big girl." _An aura started coming off Kirlia as a red ball of energy started forming in her hand. As the aura faded and her eyes turned to normal, the ball was almost her size and filled with all the energy she had just gathered. When the Garchomp saw this, she started charging forward. The Psybeam that was unleashed engulfed the dragon. When it was all done, Kirlia was laying on her back, exhausted at what she had just done, and the Garchomp was out cold.

"The winners are Kira and Razal. They move on to the finals." Nami raised the teams flag as they both ran out to Kirlia. She was breathing heavily as they picked her up.

"You did fantastic sis." Kira took the poke and started hugging her tightly.

_"Thats great and all, but please let me keep breathing. I think I need to take a nap." _She was out soon after saying it and the trainers both laughed at it all while they went to the drop-off area to have their Pokemon checked out.

"Wonder how Zion and Rayne are doing."

--

"Specter, try to use it again." The Haunter let out another wave of hypnotic rings toward Zurtle, who again ignored them completely.

"We're to hyped to sleep. Water Gun!" Zion was hopping almost as much as Kara was during the match. The turtle let out a hard flow of water toward the ghost, who didn't fade in time, but was only clipped by the attack.

"Oh, let's get that metally thing Mismagius. Use Shadow Ball!" The ghost formed a ball of darkness in front of her before firing.

"Dodge into one of the holes and try to use Dig-Out again!" Rayne's partner jumped into one of the holes it had made during the match. Every time she tried to use the Dig-Out, the ghost started disappearing.

The ground shook as the metal ball came up and missed her again as she disappeared. Rayne looked discouragingly at Zion, who was starting to feel the panic.

"We need more power then we have to win this."

"I know, but we just have to do our best. They must have a weakness of some kind. Besides, how could we get more power at this point?" As he said it, both Zurtle and Lairon looked at each other. They nodded and both started charging all their energy. Shortly after they started, both began to glow.

"Looks like an interesting turn of events folks as both of one teams Pokemon are evolving." The announcer felt the shake from the cheers of the audience.

"They must have heard us say we needed more power." The trainers watched as the lights faded and where Wartortle and Lairon once stood, now was a Blastoise and an Aggron. Both let out a roar as their opponents stared at them.

"YES, YOUR FULLY EVOLVED SO NOW FLOODING THE WORLD WILL BE NO PROBLEM! FORGET THIS MATCH. WE'RE GOING FOR CAKE AND ICE-CREAM NOW! ALL YOU CAN EAT!" The giant turtle jumped and grabbed the boy up in a bone-breaking hug.

"Ice-Cream? Can we join you? Pleasepleasepleaseplease..." Kara heard him and was now begging at the boys feet. Rayne and Leon watched as the 2 discussed everything before they were both grabbed and dragged from the field. The crowd was stunned into silence, except for Raz, Kira, Nami, and Spark who were hysterically laughing.

"That's our son." The announcer soon regained his composer as a note was handed from the judges.

"Folks, I have just been informed that both teams have been disqualified, and so the winners for the right to face the champions are Kira Hightide and Razal Psychosi with their Pokemon Kirlia and Gallade! We will see them again in action tonight when they meet at the Grand Stage. See you then people."

As the announcer cut off, Nami and Spark led the couple out to the platform they had judged on and held their hands up, causing the crowd to erupt in applause. They looked at each other with smiles as they were cheered. They would soon face their toughest opponents yet.

--

"So what is the Grand Stage?" The winners were entering a dinner with Nami and Spark to celebrate before the final match. Kirlia and Gallade were both placed in quick rejuvenation chambers to be fully restored before the match.

"It is the second best battle field in the region. The best being that of the champion of the Elite Four. It has a raised area for the trainers and the field is so big, it has every type of terrain. You'll get a good look at it before we head there. First you should eat though, then we need to make sure you look good for the match." Raz could tell Nami already had ideas about how to dress them, and not one of those ideas did he like.

"Sounds fun. I take it you'll take care of Kira while I go with Spark?" He looked at the older man who smiled and nodded. Neither of them liked clothes shopping much, so they usually picked the first thing the were comfortable in.

"Yep, and I've also got Rayne going with you to make sure you 2 don't just pick the first thing you see." Both men grimaced as they sat.

"This is gonna be a long day." Raz leaned over to Kira quickly before finishing his thought. _"Truth is that I don't envy you one bit though." _He kissed here quickly before letting his mind go back to not wanting to shop.

--

"Welcome all to the Grand Stage for this special match. We have the winners of the Couples Tournament now standing on the blue side of the field. Give a hand for Razal Psychosi and Kira Hightide!" The crowd erupted as the 2 waved from their platform.

"You look wonderful." Raz looked at Kira in the outfit Nami and her got. It was a gold dress with black shorts and shoes. It was casual enough for her to actually be able to wear in public if she wanted. She also had the clip he had given her in her hair, where she had worn it all day and yesterday.

"Your not too shabby yourself." He was in a pair of black slacks with a silver line down the sides. His shirt was a short sleeved silver shirt with a black long-sleeved one underneath and black shoes. He was also wearing what looked like new glasses. He just smiled before kissing her and turning to face the opponents as they entered.

"Now for last years champions. She is considered the best Water Pokemon trainer in the world, and he is also the League Champion as well. They just got married a few months ago and are ready to defend their title, now as newlyweds. Give a great welcome to the champs, Ash and Misty Ketchum!"

The 2 legendary trainers entered on the other end of the arena with a Pikachu beside them. If there had been a roof, it would have exploded.

--

"Boss, the match is just starting. We will grab the girl when all the Pokemon a weakened and the resistance will be minmallized." Eddy watched from a roof across from the field. Brass was sitting in a helecopter behind him.

_"Very good. Just remember not to fail me."_ A click cut the man off and Eddy turned to his partner.

"We will succeed in this. I don't want you being soft for even a second." He was glaring at the woman now as he spoke firmly to her.

"I got it hun. Don't get so uptight about it though. It'll go smoother then the last attempt. My rope never misses." She started spinning a lasso over her hed now as Eddy turned back to the stage.

"Be sure it doesn't."

--

--

A/N: The champs are here! I truely wonder if anyone figured it out. Good for you if you did. Also, I must be setting a record or something. 3 chapters in 1 day, and I'm already working to have the next one posted by the days end. Let's hope I can do it. And that's the way the cookie crumbles. "points to the audience" Back to you.


	26. A Battle & A Break In

"That's the champions?" Zion was with Rayne and Omnivee in a bench behind Raz and Kira. "How can they beat the League Champ and the best Water trainer. Their doomed. We could leave now and get some cake."

"You move one step and I'll hit you harder then I did that Ian." She made a fist and the boy instantly stopped and sat still for the match. "Remember, Raz has done a lot of great things in the past, just believe in them."

"You nervous?" Raz was looking at Kira who was rigid at the names of their opponents. She tried to nod, but made an awkward head movement instead that made the boy laugh. "It's just another match. We can do this." He looked her in the eyes until she calmed and looked back at him.

"If you believe we can." She tipped up and kissed him before looking to the other end. The champs were in place and Ash's Pikachu was already on the field opposite Kirlia.

"Let's have a good match here." Nami and Spark were in a higher platform, each holding a flag to represent a team. They were apparently the refs for this match also.

"Time to show em why we're the champs. Go Marill." Misty through a ball and released the blue mouse. Ash looked her and nodded.

"Ready for it Pikachu?" The electric mouse released small jolts from his cheeks.

"Time for the final match Gallade. Let's do our best." As the other Psychic touched down next to Kirlia, he looked at the opponents and measured their power. He could feel that the Pika must have been a great fighter to have all the energy he felt.

"Begin!" A buzzer sounded and the match began.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the Gallade!" Ash ordered quickly and his poke was off. When he got close, his tail started glowing. He swung it hard at the target, but Gallade saw it coming and teleported a few feet away before swinging his arm around at the mouse who jumped and dodged the attack. The movements were so quick a few people blinked to make sure they actually saw them.

"Kirlia, get that Marill with a Psybeam from behind!" When Raz said it, the Psychic disappeared before reappearing behind the water mouse and releasing a beam of energy. She was hit hard by it and rolled away, but got up seemingly undamaged.

_"This is gonna be fun." _She vanished again and hit the same target with another Psybeam. This time with a little more power. She kept it up, making sure the poke couldn't fight back as she rolled from point to point.

"Marill, you need to stop rolling and get on your feet!" Misty yelled for her poke, but the momentum was increasing, making stopping a hard thing to do.

"Pikachu, about-face Thunder Bolt!" The poke turned instantly and let out a bolt that caught Kirlia as she appeared, and shooting her off against a boulder. She got up with a sharp pain in her ribs. She glared at the electric mouse as he helped the Marill onto her feet.

Gallade was at her side instantly. He looked at her before turning and charging the mice. He caught the Pikachu with a Psycho Cut, but as he hit him, Marill released a strong jet of water in his face. Both the ones hit fell onto the ice terrain. Gallade was up quickly and stood carefully on the slippery surface. Pika was lucky enough to have claws he pushed into the ice for traction.

"Use Thunder Bolt while he's unable to move easily!" The Pika smirked as he discharged a jolt at the poke. Just before it hit though, the target of it vanished before reappearing behind the other opponent. Marill flew hard from a point-blank Psycho Cut that knocked her out as she bounced off a tree. Misty dropped to her knees as she returned the poke.

"Get him Pikachu!" As Gallade turned around, he caught a glimpse of the tail as it hit him across the face and sent him across the field, knocked out.

"You did good old friend." Kira pulled out the Psychics ball and recalled him. The crowd had grown silent as the match was down to a 1-on-1 with Pikachu against Kirlia. Both were charging their attacks.

"Psybeam!"

"Thunder Bolt!"

The attacks were called simultaneously and collided in the air. The beams struggled against each other as they pushed back and forth. The sound of a chopper caught the attention of the trainers as the looked up and saw one flying above them. The Pokemon both quit their attacks and knelt down, panting while they watched.

"Prepare for trouble," Brass was hanging onto the side as she spun the rope over her head. It shot out and wrapped around Kira before pulling her hard up to the woman.

"No need to make it double, we'll just take our prize and leave." Eddy began raising them into the air when he saw Kira safely in.

"NO!" Raz glared at the chopper as the purple aura came over him again. Kirlia looked at him as he nodded to her thoughts. She vanished from the field.

As she reappeared in the copter, a dust started sprinkling on her. She looked up to see a Beautifly before the powder knocked her out at Kira's feet. Eddy smirked before going over the speakers.

"We were sure you would try that, so now we thank you for you gift. Later you losers." When it was above the arena walls, a jet engine boosted them forward. Kira began struggling instantly to grab the sleeping poke. Brass tried to hold her back before she finally knelt down and picked up the little poke.

"If I hand her to you, will you stop fighting?" Kira looked at the woman and nodded. She instantly stopped when Kirlia's sleeping body was in her arms. They were out of sight in a manor of seconds.

Raz was screaming as he jumped off the platform. He leaped straight into Rayne and Zion who was holding Omnivee. He grabbed them before they vanished from the field. Everyone became silent while Nami came over the speakers.

"Team Rocket has just kidnapped the girl and Pokemon. Raz has informed me he heard their minds say they were based in Viridian, and for all able trainers to get there as fast as possible. Go to the airport if you want to be taken there." Nami ans Spark jumped off the judges platform and landed on her Gyarados as she released it. Ash joined Misty on her Gyarados as they followed the older couple.

--

Pallet town is quiet with slumber when a whoosh awakens Prof. Oak who is asleep on his couch. He looks up and sees Raz and Zion standing there with a girl and Omnivee which he had been shown during a phone call.

"What was that?" Zion fell into a chair behind him as he stared at Raz who was still covered in the purple aura.

"I'm a psychic. Always have been. Kirlia has been teaching me some of the stuff she does, but I can only teleport if I'm overwhelmed. It doesn't matter right now though, Oak, we need a car, fast." He turned to the older man who was still waking up.

"I'm sorry but I don't have one. Why are you here and why do you need one though?" He watched as tears started flowing from the boys eyes.

"They took Kira, and I'm going to get her and Kirlia back. They've taken Viridian City also, so we need a car to break through the gate." He stared off for a minute before opening the door as Gary Oak was about to knock. He looked at the stunned boy for a second before grabbing his keys and running for the car in the driveway. Zion and Rayne were right behind him as he started it and slammed the gas in reverse and then forward going as fast as possible.

"You got a plan for how we're gonna get them out?" Rayne was in the passenger seat as they flew down the road. She looked at the speedometer and saw the needle on 120 mph.

"Not yet, but I'm getting one. They already arrived a few seconds ago. When I get to a certain spot, you 2 will have to guard me. Hope your up for a fight." They saw the lights of the city as the approached. Raz didn't even ease off the gas as he raced toward the gate that was surrounded by Rockets. They barely jumped out of the way in time as the car slammed through the gate and was quickly flying through the streets toward the gym.

As they screeched to a halt, they jumped out and ran up the steps. Raz stopped them at the doors.

"Stay here and make sure no one enters. This is a fight that I have to do. See you guys soon." He was quickly through the door and shut it behind him. The other 2 watched as Omnivee started growling. They turned to see around 20 Rockets approach them.

"Time for that fight he promised." Rayne laughed as she pulled out a ball.

"Indeed." Zion's voice was the hard concentrating one as he pulled a ball out. All the Rockets pulled out their balls as they closed in on the 2.

--

"I know your here Giovanni. Your the one who changed Kira and had those 2 morons kidnap her. Show yourself!" As he got closer to the center of the arena, a light came on showing the leader of Team Rocket in a chair.

"You've given my units a lot of trouble over something that belongs to us. We didn't kidnap anyone, we just took back what was already ours." As he spoke, another light came on showing Kira hanging by her wrists above the center of the floor. "Tell you what though, how about a bet. If you can win a match under my gyms rules, you can take the girl and your Pokemon back. If you lose however, you must join Team Rocket and be a willing soldier."

Raz stared up at the girl he loved. It didn't take him long to know what he would do.

"Deal. I already know your gym's rules. Three Pokemon each with no time limit." He walked over to the spot that was marked for challengers and watched as the man laughed.

"Actually, I've changed the rules to a 2 each style. Pick carefully, because mine are 2 of the best." He held up a black pokeball as Raz pulled one out.

"Alright then. Let's go." The aura around the boy exploded as he flexed his determination farther then ever.

Kira looked on from above, trying to scream at Raz to run through the tape that held her mouth shut. Tears began falling as she watched him, and she truly hoped he could win against what she knew the man had. Both threw there balls out, and the match of Raz's life began.

--

--

A/N: Finally time for my most looked forward to part of the story. I won't be putting any notes at the bottom of the next few chapters, so please remember to review and enjoy.


	27. Zion Unleashed

"Gyarados and Zurtle, use Hydro Pump!" The Water Pokemon shot out the powerful blasts of water and knocked out an Arbok and Ariados. The grunts recalled them and sent more Pokemon out.

"Aggron, Rollout the group over there!" The giant metal monster roared before laying on her side and rolling at full speed through a group of 5 random poke's. "Now Earthquake!" When she bounced and caused the quake, another 7 fell.

"Think Raz is doing alright?" Zion watched as his Water Pokemon took down another group with powerful sprays. Omnivee was now on Gyarados's head, blasting her own pump on the targets. Rayne looked at the boy as he spoke.

"He has to be. We really aren't in any position to try and help if he isn't. Leafeon, Razor Leaf!"

"I hope so. Omnivee, Thunder Bolt the ones they pour water on!" Lightning flew from the poke, hitting the soaked Pokemon and humans, knocking all of them out. They had managed to fight off most of the troops that had stood against them. Only 3 were still standing, but only 1 of them had a Pokemon left.

The group all laughed as they all turned and ran from them. They went back to the door and stood watching for anymore.

"So, how many did you take?" Rayne looked at the boy who laughed as she said it.

"We count the last 3 as a tie?"

"Yeah."

"Then 13."

"I only got 7. Your Pokemon must have cheated or something." She half-heartedly punched the boy in the arm.

"My, she sure has grown. What do you say dear?" A man in a black suit came out from the shadows. A woman, dressed the same way, came after him.

"My, yes she has. She's become quite the woman. We missed you dear." She smiled wickedly, making Rayne flinch away.

"Well, if it isn't my dear sweet daughter. Home at last dear?" The man flashed the same smile.

"Home you call it? Sounds like Hell to me. You 2 haven't changed a bit. How pathetic." She stood tall with Zion beside her and stood face to face with the man. His grin turned into a snarl as he pulled out a pair of pokeballs, releasing a pair of Arcanine. The woman did the same, also unleashing a pair of Arcanine.

"Let's get rid of the trash." He leaped back as the 4 dogs gathered around the duo. A growl broke through that was louder then any of the dogs. Rath was out instantly, and was growling down all 4. They saw the smaller dog and just roared to make it back down. When they finished, they saw that the pup hadn't moved an inch.

Zion began trying to figure out what to do when he felt something in his pocket. He pulled out a pokeball with a note:

Zi, I've given you Bellossom's ball so that if anything happens, you will have her. She has a lot of power and can help if your in a sticky situation or if your outnumbered. Just let her out and yell for Sweet Scent in the latter situation.

See ya when this is over,

Raz

Zi pushed the button and let the flower Pokemon out. She stared at him before turning to see the fire dogs having a growling contest.

"Sweet Scent." He said it so she could hear, and she started letting out tiny petals as she danced around. The petals floated over and covered the 2 closest dogs, making them quit growling and come over to the dancer. They sat obediently and watched with their tails wagging. The other 2 paid it no mind.

"What did you do to our dogs?!" The man walked up hard on the boy, but was stopped when Rayne moved between them.

"Your NOT going to touch him!" She glared into the older mans eyes with her arm spread as to protect her friend. He smirked a little before bringing his fist around and slamming it into her head. She fell over with a cracking sound, and was out before she hit the ground. The man and woman just laughed at Zion's expression as he saw it happen.

A twig, possibly the last one of the boy's sanity, snapped and he glared down the couple with more hatred then he had ever felt. Water in the fountains around the lake started gathering as a blue aura radiated off him. He began roaring at them, with enough power that the Arcanines all backed away. The water continued gathering around him, forming shapes as enough gathered.

After a straight minute of the roar, he stopped and straightened out. Hundreds of gallons of water was covering his body, as six huge water tentacles came out of his back. He stood still while his groups Pokemon watched him. When he opened his eyes, the were completely blue and shining out. He looked down at the girl before turning toward the couple.

**"You who have disturbed my slumber. You have harmed the one this vessel cares for the most. For that, you will pay." **The voice was booming yet regal in tone. One of the tentacles wrapped around Rayne as it picked her unconscious body up. The water started glowing as it mended the broken neck that was fortunately non-fatal. When it stopped, he set her down to sleep it off.

"What are you?" The man was cowering with his wife and the Arcanine.

**"You 4 don't like these 2 humans. You were hurt when he hit the girl. Why do you still stand with them?" **As the words were spoken, the dogs looked at each other. They barked a few times before going to Rayne's side and knelling around her. Without warning, a tentacle shot out and grabbed the dog's pokeballs and set them next to her.

**"Now for you 2." **Their screams echoed into the night as the tentacles grabbed each of them.

--

"Please wake up." Zion was sitting with Rayne's head on his lap. He was surrounded by all their Pokemon. She felt tear drops hit her cheek as her eyes fluttered open. She looked around before reaching up and touching the boys face. He looked up and saw her smiling, and wrapped her into as good a hug as he could manage.

"Don't do that to me again." He was still crying, but the downpour of rain hid it well.

"I'm sorry. It was a little hard to get back though. It wasn't until I heard a voice. It was kinda like yours and it said that my time wasn't up. It would hurt you to see me go away so I should come back. Then the path lit up for me." She eased her head against his lap as they looked at each other for a little longer. She then looked around and saw the Arcanine playing with Growlithe.

"Their pokeballs are on your belt now. When I looked up, I saw them gathered around you with their balls next to you. The 2 that were here disappeared though." He looked up into the sky as lightning flashed in six directions from the same point of the black cloud.

"**WARNING, WARNING. Please evacuate the area. Self destruct program activated. You have 10 seconds to clear out."**

The 2 jumped at the sound of the computerized voice as they looked to the doors of the gym as they burst outward.

"What did he do?"


	28. The Last Gym Battle

"Go Grim." The houndoom came out with angry barks as he waited for the opponent.

"This was a gift from a friend of mine. Go Dark Lugia." A black bird like monster burst from the pokeball. Raz had seen pictures of Lugia on the news when Ash stopped the legendary birds from fighting. This was a sinister looking version.

"Alright then. Grim use a Flamethrower and singe that thing." As a blast of fire came from the dog's mouth, the giant monster flapped it's wings and ended the flames before they got close.

"Aeroblast." Giovanni looked down as his released a torrent of air at the dog. The power from the attack threw him into the wall, but he got up and stared at the bird.

"Dark Pulse it Grim!" The dog let out a howl as it released a wave of dark energy. The bird tried to flap it away, but it was unstopped and hit the monster dead on, sending it into the area below it's master.

"Quit being worthless and finish that mutt off." The bird looked up and glared at the man before shooting another Aeroblast at Grim, who just managed to jump away and release another Dark Pulse that hit the bird. This time, it was slower to get up.

"Useless. Return." The man pulled out the black ball and recalled the bird into it before looking at Raz. "Round 1 is yours. Just beat my next one and you win. Time to use my meanest Pokemon."

Rather then throw a ball, Giovanni turned and pushed a button on the wall. The wall below him slid open and 2 purple eyes were all that was visible. As the body came into view, both Grim and Raz held their breathe. Kirlia walked out with her eyes glowing as she stared down her 2 friends.

"How will you fare when the opponent is your closest friend?" Giovanni burst out laughing as the Psychic let out a scream of agony. It was then that Raz saw it. She had a small thin crown on her head that was glowing lightly.

"What did you do to her?!" It took all he had to not shout at the man who was still laughing.

"I just made her more obedient. She will obey every word I don't have to say. Now, if your ready to begin." He stopped speaking and Kirlia was in motion. She disappeared and reappeared behind Grim firing off a Psybeam. Before he could respond, she did it again. Raz saw this and knew she was in the starting part of Tele-Beam. If she got started, none of his Pokemon would stand a chance.

_"What do I do?" _Grim looked up at Raz as another beam hit him. They were getting annoying since they couldn't hurt the dog. Raz just watched as he tried to see. He watched for 5 minutes before finally sighing.

"Grim, you need to hit the crown on her head with enough force to break it but not harm her. Use Dark Pulse to stop her." The dog let out waves of the dark energy, causing the psychic to stop and teleport away. She howled in pain again and started using the Calm Mind meditation.

"Stop her! Use Flamethrower!" The dog shot a flame that bent away as it neared the poke. She was already holding her hand out with a fully charged blast formed. Raz couldn't think of anything. His mind went blank.

"_Heat! Use Overheat! It might destroy the crown!" _

He looked up to see Kirlia nod as a tear ran down her cheek. Raz nodded in return and looked at Grim.

"Overheat and burn that thing off of her."

His body released a wave of intense fire toward the target, who had managed to fight the control enough to have lowered her arms and lean forward. The blast shot her into a wall. She fell to the ground in a thud, with the crown a twisted piece of metal next to her slow breathing body.

"NO!" Giovanni was standing while he glared at the boy across from him. He managed to regain part of his composure before he turned away. "A deal is a deal. You may take your Pokemon and the girl. We won't chase her anymore. Have fun getting her down though." The man laughed as he exited through a hidden door.

Raz was looking up while he set Kirlia on Grim's back. That was when a bad situation got a lot worse.

"**WARNING, WARNING. Please evacuate the area. Self destruct program activated. You have 10 seconds to clear out."**

"Oh shit." Raz had Grim blow out the front door with a Fire Blast as he ran out with Kirlia.

"**10!"**


	29. Countdown

**"10!"**

Raz pulled his last 2 pokeballs and let them out. He had Articuno and Crobat fly up and cut the rope.

**"9!"**

The 2 eased her down to the ground where Raz helped her take the rope and tape off.

**"8!"**

**"7!"**

**"6!"**

"Time to move, you 2 get out now!" The fliers flew out as he commanded and landed next to Zion and the other Pokemon. The ground started shaking and debris started falling around the 2.

**"5!"**

**"4!"**

They took off running as quickly as possible. Raz turned as he heard a crack and Kira's hand left his. Her left legs was trapped under a huge piece of the ceiling.

**"3!"**

"Go! You need to get out while you can!" She started to let tears form as he came back and tried to lift the huge rock to no avail. He stopped as the next number sounded off.

**"2!"**

"Kira, I love you and will for the rest of my life." He bent her head up and kissed her while her eyes closed on the tears. She felt a whoosh past her.

**"1!"**

She opened her eyes to see she was outside next to the others. As she turned toward the gym, she saw Raz still inside. He looked at her and smiled as widely as he could.

**"0! Detonation!"**

The gym was leveled in seconds as Rayne watched a friend, Zion watched a brother, Kirlia, Grim, Crobat, and Bellossom watched a partner, and Kira watched her true love disappear in the smoke and dust.


	30. Fallen Hero

"This is Penny Rose reporting live from Viridian City, where just 2 hours ago the gym collapsed. It has been confirmed that the gym was the sight for the base of operations for the Pokemon thieves Team Rocket. Their leader has finally been identified as none other then Giovanni, the world renown businessman.

"The real story here is about a young man. His name was Razal Psychosi, and he and his friends are the reason that over 15 Rocket members were brought into custody, and Giovanni was named the leader. Razal himself had managed to save his friends and Pokemon from the building, but sadly did not make it out himself.

"As you can see behind me, many trainers have joined in the search for the body of this brave young man. Even gym leaders like Lt. Surge and Erika have made it out to join in the search, but most surprising is that the champion Ash Ketchum and his wife Misty are out here. When questioned about it, Ash was quoted as saying, "We still have a match to finish.". The mood is sad but some-what optimistic, but with no end to the search in sight, we have no idea how long that will last. This is Penny Rose, Channel 7 News. Back to you in the studio."

--

"Why? Why did he do it?" Kira was sitting on the back of an ambulance with Rayne holding her. When the building fell, she had cried until it hurt. When everyone had arrived and Zion told them what happened, she had shut down almost. Rayne was surprised to hear her after over an hour of silence.

"What?" She looked down at the girl who was now staring into the rain that had started when the gym fell.

"Why did he teleport me out and not himself also?"

"I don't know. Maybe it was because he had brought me and Zion from Saffron to Pallet. He might not have had enough power for a 2 person trip, so he had to choose between you and him. We know that given the choice, he would have picked to save any of us because he's Raz, and he seems to have no self-preservation in his mind."

She laughed a little at thinking of the 1 time she knew of, when the boy was trying to protect Kira's baby Pokemon and took a poisoning for it. Kira remembered the Cerulean gym instead. Zion had told her that when they touched the electrified water when she fell in, Raz jumped in and ignored the pain through his body to save her.

"How is the search? We should be out there." Kira started to stand before she buckled on her broken leg. This was the first time she was glad it wasn't made of bone and nerves. When the leg had gotten crushed, the sensors that let her feel it like a normal leg were destroyed, so she wasn't in even the slightest pain from it. Rayne was up instantly and helped her up. She wrapped the girls arm around her neck and helped her hobble over to where Nami and Spark were.

"How's the search going?" Nami turned as Kira spoke and was instantly on the girl. She hugged her so hard, Rayne had to join to position herself so her neck wouldn't break.

"Oh, Kira. We're doing our best, but we haven't found anything yet. They have the entire Growlithe unit searching all over for any scent they can find. If only that Houndoom would help." They looked over and saw Grim laying with his paws over his face. He was making a low moaning sound every few seconds.

"He's just upset. I'm sure all his Pokemon are. Speaking of which, where is Kirlia?" As she spoke it she heard a boulder of ruble fly through the air and hit a tree. They looked over and the little Psychic was hurling massive boulders wherever she saw them.

"She's a little upset. She threw 3 trainers that tried to help her, so now everyone just stays away. Everyone except that Gallade of yours. He broke out and has been coming to her every few minutes to see if she wants him to take over. She just looks at him and he goes away. At least, that's what we guess since we don't understand him and she won't talk."

They would have continued, except that Kira was watching as a shift in the air made Grim stand up and start smelling it. The dog barked loudly and took off into the ruble. He sprinted past Kirlia, who heard what he was barking and followed him instantly. Spark came over and picked Kira up before they followed as quickly as possible.

They watched as Grim led them to an unoccupied area of the gym. The others had seen this and were on there way. They watched as the dog walked around in a circle that got smaller. When he was over a point halfway around, he jumped away and started howling. Kirlia was instant in removing a large section of the building. When she hurled it off, they all gasped at what the poke's had uncovered.

"I-it's him." Kira was staring down with the rest of them. Grim's howls became agonized at the sight of the body. They could tell from the right part of the face that it was Raz, but that was the only thing they could work with really. His hair was gone, as were any of his limbs. Both legs and arms were crushed and had disconnected from the body. His face had also been crushed on the left side. There was no motion of breathing. There was no motion of anything as the rain started falling harder.

"Now, at least, we can give him a proper burial. The burial of a hero." Ash was holding Misty as she began to cry. They started walking away with the other trainers. Kira and Spark stood there longer then anyone, looking down at the broken mess that she loved.

Eventually, the man decided they should head back and turned. She was about to cry when she heard something. She held he head up, causing Spark to listen also.

"Gasp"

"There it was again. What is making that-" She turned to the hole and pointed for the man to go back. They were there in seconds and were watching as the body began gasping again for air. Spark set her down and took off, yelling as loud as he could for them to come back. Kira continued as tears started over her cheeks.

"Come on, stay with us. You've still got a lot to live for. Come on. Your Pokemon are missing you. Please come on." She watched as the gasping eased and the body started breathing normally as she spoke. The others came with a stretcher and crash equipment. Kirlia lifted his body out easily and set it on the stretcher. They were off instantly, with Kira being carried by Spark and keeping up with them. She continued to speak to him as they loaded it into the ambulance. They followed, as she prayed to Shaymin for him to be alright.

A rainbow appeared through the clouds.

--

1 Month Later

--

"Come on, sleepy. You need to wake up. Just wait til you see your knew body." Kira was sitting at her post next to the hospital bed where Raz was. She held his hand as she spoke, hoping for the miracle of him waking. Nami had the room specially built for the group, in 1 day. It had beds and a big bathroom. Kira hadn't left since they arrived.

Nami had tried to get her out to eat, but eventually stopped and always brought the food to her. She said that Kira should rest, that she was why the boy even had a body now. Kira was indeed responsible for it. When they were in surgery with him, she had technicians scan her body and create parts for the boy.

He had new legs and arms. They also had to remake half his brain and heart, as well as his eyes. She found it amusing that when she looked at her love now, he looked like the opposite version of her. The left side of his face was made of the same metal that her right side was made of. He had the same parts as her, so he could feel the touch on the bio-skin they covered his arms with, leaving only a little part on each limb uncovered to show where they joined the bones at.

The oddest part was what Kira hadn't told the others. Her hair was also a part that had been replaced when they made her. It was now made of some metal wires that had been made to produce the same feeling of hair, but it wouldn't grow or get oily and greasy. Nami had them put a version on Raz, but not in the same color as his natural hair. Now he had the same hair-do he always had before, but now it was bright gold.

Kira listened as Nami entered and checked the monitors. The older woman came around and put an arm on the girl.

"He'll come around when he's ready. Give his new brain some time to adjust itself. It's almost dawn, you want something to eat?" She watched as the girl looked up.

"I think I'll join you this time. Maybe he needs some time alone." The girls walked out as Kira leaned against the other woman and they headed for the cafeteria.

The others were surprised to see her there. They talked for a while, mostly letting Zion tell them about the stuff he and Raz had always done when they were little. When they were all done, they all got up to sit with the boy as the sun came up. They had started joining Kira for it when she told them why she was always up at first light. Kira was looking down when they got there, and walked straight into Zion as the boy opened the door.

"Why are you just standing in the door way?" She looked up to see the boy wide-eyed. She followed his gaze to a bed that was empty, except for the monitor wires that were laying on it. It took her mind a minute to realize something was missing. The others had just saw the bed also, and were off immediately.

They all started yelling down the halls as they went down to the next floor. Only Kira stayed on the floor the room was on. She continued yelling when she started trying to think about who would move him. She went back to the room and saw that the clothes they had for him were gone as well. As she looked at the table, the sun shined through and hit her inf the face as it began over a hill on the horizon.

She took off as the memory of the roof in Viridian hit her. She took the stairs up to the roof 2 to 3 at a time. She burst through the door and was on top of the building, searching for the boy. She saw she was alone and fell to her knees. She began weeping into her hands, and didn't notice until the hand was on her shoulder. She felt it but didn't care who had came to check on her. It wasn't until he spoke that she looked up.

"Maybe I should have left a note on the table or something." A smile crossed his face when she looked up. He was in the clothes they had set for him, and was perfectly fine. She jumped up and wrapped her arms around the boy as fresh tears started. He did the same, and held her until she pulled away. Then she hit him in the shoulder.

"Don't you ever do that to me again. If you ever try to die again, I'll be coming after you." He let her hit him a few more times before he caught her arms and pulled her into another hug.

"Alright. I guess I'll have to be more careful. So, what now? We should probably go down and let everyone know I'm up and ready to go." He looked down as she looked up. "I guess we could do 1 more thing before we go down." She tipped her self up and kissed him as hard as she could.

"I'll be by your side for it all from now on." She pulled away from him and they started down the stairs. When they got to the bottom floor, he looked at her.

"And I'll always be at your side for it all." They smiled as they stepped out into the lobbey, and into the first day of a new life.

--

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Indigo League Tournament. We are gathered by trainers who have been able to gather 8 badges from beating 8 gym leaders in the region. The winner will get the Indigo Trophy, and have the right to challenge champion Ash Ketchum for the title. Wait. I have just received word that some special guests have just arrived. They were given a special badge by the champ that is allowing them to participate today, even if they didn't gather all the badges needed.

"Ladies and gentlemen, now entering the arena are the heroes that brought the fall of Team Rocket. Razal Psychosi, Kira and Zion Hightide, and Rayne Kasia. A round of applause for them folks." As the announcer cut off, the crowd roared for the group. Kirlia was on Raz's shoulders looking at the crowd as they entered.

_"This should be fun. I hope we get to fight that Ash again, I need to show his Pikachu who would have won that match."_ Kira and Raz both laughed as they got to their spots on the arena floor. As they looked around they saw Ian standing a few people over. Zion looked and saw Sara also near them, but she looked different somehow. Her hair was messy and her eyes looked wild. It made him want to go to her. Just then the announcer came on.

"Welcome trainer from all over. You are here for this tournament to test your skills against each other. Today you will know your first opponents, but the matches won't begin until tomorrow. Tonight we invite you to enjoy the festivities. When the torch of Moltres Flame is lit, the tournament will officially begin."

As he spoke, they turned to see a man with a torch run up some steps to where Ash was standing at the top. He took it from the man and held it up, lighting a much bigger fire. The crowd erupted as the tournament began, and what a tournament it will be.

--

--

A/N: I'm back, and so is Raz, so you can stop the death threats. Time for another tournament. How far will they go? What is up with Sara? Has Ian changed any? The last one has an obvious answer, but to find out the other ones, ya gots to keep reading. Later.


	31. Indigo League: Rough Start

"So who did you guys get? Mine is that girl Kara. The one that acted kinda like Zion, only odder." Kira was sitting next to Raz while Nami ordered for them. Zion was next to Rayne while Kirlia was sitting with Gallade. Spark had gone somewhere, but he was supposed to come back before the food got there.

"Mine is a dude called Zantar." Raz looked at her with his newly colored eyes. While they had worked when he woke that first time, Nami had waited to add color until he picked one. Now, Zion always poked fun at the 2 of them. He leaned over to Rayne and lowered his voice so that everyone could still hear, but it was whispered in tone.

"I told you. Look at them, he has gold hair, silver eyes, and a metal left side while she has silver hair, gold eyes, and a metal right side. They were made for each other." He laughed while everyone else sighed at the stupidest joke the boy had ever told. They laughed soon after when Rayne knocked him out with a pan she still had in her bag.

"Anyways, I got some boy named Shane." They watched as Zion raised back up and rejoined the conversation.

"I got some guy named Adam. He was at the couples tournament If I remember right." Spark returned then, having only heard his son's match.

"You all can do it. Remember that after today, you go into brackets if you win. The 8 trainers who win today go on to the real tournament. I'll be cheering for each of you. I wonder how Sara is though? I tried to talk to her, but she just walked off muttering something about finally paying attention. I don't know."

Nami just shrugged it off and turned her attention to the crowd that was outside the restaurant's window, watching them. Raz and Kira turned and saw them also. He just waved his hand and the curtains closed them from sight. The others looked at him as he smirked a little.

"That reminds me of something I wanted to ask you. You said you have always been a psychic, but how come you never used it before?" Zion waited while he took a sip of water.

"I never could before. I could do things anytime my emotions became too much in the beginning. Then it turned up when I was 8 and I could hear things if people thought them like they were screaming for someone to hear. That resulted in 2 great things happening. My dad and me had an argument, and I heard him wish with all his heart I wasn't born so he would have had more money. That day he kicked me out.

"The second was when I heard Kira. Her thought shot into my dreams and I knew I had to help her when I heard the real scream the next morning. Now, though, it's a lot easier to do simple stuff, like move things, but the thoughts have stopped. I prefer that actually. Imagine hearing what other people thought all the time."

_"Yeah, who could stand that." _Kirlia looked at him like he was an idiot for a second, which made everyone that heard her laugh.

"Anyways, the tournament starts in a few hours. You guys ready?" Raz watched as each nodded. "Then let's go have some fun.

--

"And with the win over Zantar, Razal joins Ian, Leon, Zion, and Sara as the trainers going on to the next stage of the tournament. The next match is Kira Hightide against Kara Kiara. This should be an interesting match that will begin in 30 minutes."

Raz rejoined the others in the locker room as Kira stared at the ceiling with Rayne next to her. Kirlia ran past the boy and jumped at her, landing on her lap and scaring the poor girl. As he joined them, Raz held the shaking hand to calm her.

"It's just a match. If you win it's great, but if not, then at least you know you did your best." Her hand did ease as he talked to her. She leaned against him and started messing with Kirlia's hair on the sides of the red disk's on her head.

"I suppose."

--

The girls were on the field. Raz had come with Kira and was sitting on some bleacher seats with Nami and Spark. They had just arrived when the trainers were called to enter. The ref raised the flags and lowered them so they could start.

"Go Absol!" She tossed the ball and the dog-like poke came out.

"Let's play with them Mismagius!" Kara jumped as she threw the ball and released the ghost. "Shadow Ball!" A ball of dark energy formed in front of her and fired toward her target, who nimbly dodged.

"Razor Wind!" Her horn started glowing as she raised forward. She jumped and twisted, releasing a flat shot at the opponent. It hit before she could disappear to dodge. The blast knocker her back, but she floated forward and stared her target in the eyes.

"Parish Song!" The ghost began singing as the attack was called. Absol heard it and began to feel drained. She tried to move, but fell over instead. The song continued until she was asleep and out. Kira returned her as the ref raised the flag for Kara's side. She pulled out her next ball and released Dragonair. He came out and watched the hovering Mismagius.

"Let's sing again!" She opened her mouth and started to sing, but was interrupted when Dragonair unleashed a Hyper Beam that struck her with full force. She fell over and was out. Kara recalled her and pulled out the next ball. "Ow, what a mean dragon. Let's show him Glaceon!"

As the Ice Eevee evolution touched down, Dragonair visibly shuddered. Kira knew Dragon Pokemon hated Ice since they were weak to it.

"Dragonair, heat things up with Flamethrower!" The flame burst out, but the little poke was fast and took off in a circle. She froze the grassy area as she ran, with the flame melting it as they gave chase.

"Use Ice Beam and stop him cold!" The fox continued running as she let out the cold blue lightning. The flames moved in time for the blasts to collide and explode in the air. This shot up a cloud of smoke that blinded everyone. When it cleared some, they could see both Pokemon still standing. Glaceon was moving quickly to distance the gap, while Dragonair seemed to not move at all.

It wasn't until all the smoke completely cleared that the full body of the dragon was exposed. Almost his entire lower half was frozen in a giant block of ice. Kara began laughing as she saw victory edging closer. Glaceon stopped running and also began laughing. Kira looked at them before seeing Dragonair beginning to drop as the ice began causing him intense pain. She looked at the field before deciding on something she saw.

"I wouldn't laugh if I were you. You never know how a match is gonna go. Dragonair, please try and shoot just 1 Thunder Bolt if you can!" The frozen dragon raised his head and let out a small blast of electricity. Then he fell over and passed out. The opponents watched as the attack began falling before it was close enough. Kara became even more confident.

"GLAAAAA!" Sparks were all over the Ice Pokemon as the attack hit the ground a few feet away. After a short few seconds, she fell over with a tiny splash, into the water she had been standing in that was made by the Flamethrower chasing her. Both trainer recalled their Pokemon and pulled out their last balls.

"Your my last chance, go Gallade." The psychic fighter hit the ground and raised his arms into a fighting stance.

"Win and we get sundaes. I WANT THOSE SUNDAES EMPOLEON!" The metal penguin came out and looked at the challenge before him. He raised his arms and got into a stance of his own.

"Psycho Cut!"

"Drill Peck!"

Both leaped at the other, Gallade with his arms glowing and Empoleon with his body spinning into a golden tornado. The collided and bounced off each other, landing perfectly with no damage being done to either. They stared at each other with amazement of the others power.

"Nice poke, but we really, REALLY want to win those sundaes. Aqua Jet!" The poke surrounded himself with water before actually flying at the psychic. With no chance to respond, He hit the target with full force, sending him flying backward.

The wind was knocked out of him, but Gallade managed to stand back up and returned to his pose as the attack came again with the same amount of force. Kira watched as her partner got up again and again, even though he started wincing and knew he wouldn't be able to defend in time. She pulled out the ball and looked at him..

"You did great, but it just isn't our day. Stay down this time Gallade. We'll train and try again 1 day." She let a tear fall as her partner heard her, and did as she asked, knowing they would fight again in the future, but then he would be stronger. She recalled him when he stayed down, and then fell to her knees. "You really gave it your all. We will get stronger."

Raz walked up and helped her to her feet as he smiled.

"You did your best. I know what it's like to not think your partner can succeed. At least you didn't jump in and take the attack like I did." She laughed at him and wiped her face as Kara bound over to them.

"That was so much fun. I hope we meet again so we can have another match. Wanna go get some ice-cream with me? It's no fun eating alone and like I said, I really want some sundaes. Please say you'll come." She looked at the pair with wide puppy eyes as she asked. They looked at each other before nodding and were then quickly dragged out of the arena at a speed a cheetah would be hard to match. One thought went through Raz's head as they flew by.

_"Am I just a magnet for oddities?"_

--

"It's time now for the last match of the day, with tomorrow being the start of the bracketed tournament. So far we have the following trainers going on to the next round. Ian Monopolous, Leon Dyna, Sara Hightide, Razal Psychosi, Kara Kiara, Zion Hightide, and Xisin Danielson. Let's see how the outcome of this match goes as it looks like the trainers are about to start."

--

Rayne pulled out a ball while she looked at the boy she was facing. He looked like Zion to her, if he was less beach-boy and more bad-boy. He had blue hair and eyes, but was wearing a white tank-top and blue jeans, something she knew Zi would never wear, even in 3 foot snow. She laughed at the vision before throwing her pokeball in the air, releasing Growlithe.

"Let's do it to the max Rath." Her dog started growling as the boy stared at the coldly.

"Win this Terror." He released the poke to reveal a Teddiursa, who looked like the last thing to give the nickname terror to.

"Don't be fooled by the cuteness. Let's char it with a Flamethrower!" The fire dog bellowed a flame out. The bear didn't flinch as the flame came at him.

"Get rid of that thing with a Shadow Claw." The bears claw grew black and he swiped it, knocking the attack away. Rath looked on in shock as the attack was deflected. After getting over it, he shot a ball of fire at the bear, who knocked it away without using an attack to strengthen his paw.

"Let's see how they do with something a little stronger. Use Fire Blast!" A flame shaped like a star came out and raced forward. Terror had Shadow Claw charged and slashed at the attack, but the power was more then he expected and he was hit by most of it. He looked at the singed fur as he got back up, and began growling.

"Close Combat." The growling bear got on all fours and started dashing across the field toward Rath. Rayne watched on with a smile growing on her face. The bear leaped into the air with his claws wide apart.

"Overheat!" Flames burst from the dogs body and hit the target in midair, sending him flying against the wall the judge was on, and knocking him unconscious. Shane recalled the bear and pulled out the next ball.

"Your dog must be tired, so let's take him down for Terror, Minimus." A Minun came out of the ball and looked at the now panting dog. Sparks released as he remembered the opponent had beaten a friend.

"Flamethrower!"

"Charge Beam."

The attacks connected, but the lightning ripped through the flames and hit Rath hard enough to knock him backwards. He shook it off after a second and stood back up.

"Your distance attacks aren't going to work for a bit, so try to hit it with a Take Down!" Rath ran quickly down the field as the mouse cheered itself for hitting him. While he did seem distracted, Minimus nimbly jumped and back flipped over the dog before hitting him with another Charge Beam.

It took a little longer, but Rath eventually got back up and glared at the mouse who was laughing at him. In an act of rage, he let flames heat his mouth as he leaped into the air. The mouse lost balance and was caught by surprise when the dog grabbed him with fiery fangs that burned the mouse. After listening to squeaks of pain from the opponent, Rath shook his head and threw the mouse down.

"Great job boy!" Rayne was jumping with joy as Minimus was recalled. Rath didn't respond as he tried to pull in as much air as he could for his now tired body. He was half kneeling as Shane pulled out the last one.

"Your last up to bat Cast. See what you can do." The ball came back as he released a Castform from it. The poke started moving back and forth, making clouds start to appear above the field. Soon after, rain began falling and pelted everyone. Rath looked up before standing and staring down at the poke.

"This is the end for your pup. Weather Ball." A ball formed in front of Cast as his body changed into a water type. The ball morphed with him and began to glow blue. As he fired it, Rath fell back on his left hind leg, and the ball hit him hard in the chest. He tried to get up again, but his body had maxed out and wouldn't respond. Rayne recalled him quickly.

"You did fantastacle. Now you can rest it off. Leafeon has it from here." She tossed a ball up and released the plant fox, who watched the opponent as he started looking to the sky. The clouds faded and a bright ball appeared above them, heating the arena up quickly as Cast changed from Water to Fire.

"You probably should have thought about your choice a little more. Get rid of that plant with a fire Weather Ball." Another ball formed in front of the poke and shot outward with red flames coming off the back. Leafeon saw it coming and jumped quickly and closed the gap between him and the opponent.

As the fire ball hit the ground behind him, the plant fox started running circles around Cast as more versions started appearing.

"That's it, use Double Team, and then show it why his sun gave us a bonus as well." The circle began glowing as the poke in the center started shooting balls at the targets. When he destroyed another clone, they stopped and a bright yellow beam shot from all the rest, hitting Cast and engulfing the poke.

"Cast!" Shane looked on as the lights faded and his poke's fake sun faded. The poke floated for a bit before falling down. As he returned him, he smiled at Leafeon before turning and walking away. The other 2 watched as the crowd cheered for them. She tossed Leafeon in the air as the announcer came on.

"And that does it for todays matches with Rayne Kasia getting a hard fought victory. Her name has been put into the computers with the others as brackets are now being randomly formed. Watch the big screen as the results come up and show who will be against whom during the tournament tomorrow."

As he cut off, the screens wen white showing a bracket on them with names starting to appear.

Match 1

Zion Hightide

vs

Sara Hightide

Match 2

Leon Dyna

vs

Rayne Kasia

Match 3

Kara Kiara

vs

Ian Monopolous

Match 4

Xisin Danielson

vs

Razal Psychosi

The group watched as their names appeared. Zion choked on a piece of cake when he saw his opponent would be Sara, and theirs was the first match. Raz watched and grew more determined looking as a smile grew across his face.

_"One person stands between each of us." _The memory of what Ian had said to Kira at the dance flashed through his mind, and Raz stared into the night sky as he dreamed, wishing he had been the one to have punched the boy that night.

_"Maybe I'll get lucky and get my shot again."_

_--_

_--_

A/N: And the tournament is now underway. Time for things to get exciting as the twins face off in the first match of the bracketed tourny. See what happens as we learn more about a certain sister in the next chapter. See ya then.


	32. Sapphire Tears

"Nervous?" Raz was watching as Zion walked around the locker room. He had been acting oddly ever since it was discovered he had to face Sara in the first match. He didn't even answer while the others continued to watch him.

"If it would make you feel better, we will be with you the whole time." Kira watched as he looked up finally, but quickly dropped his gaze back down and continued walking. Kirlia sat between the 2, but she knew a little more as she listened to his thoughts. He was just remembering earlier that day.

--

_"What am I gonna do? She's always won when we compete, but this time feels different. When we saw her at the opening, she seemed off." _Zion was just passing a bakery, without even the slightest desire to go in. He was looking down, and didn't see her until it was too late.

"Watch where your go- oh, it's you." He looked up and saw he had just walked straight into Sara, who was looking worse then before. Her red hair was wild and tangled, and her clothes were torn and tattered. Her eyes didn't look wild anymore, but rather had a sorrow to them. "What are you looking at?"

"I'm sorry, I wasn't watching as I walked. What happened to you though? You look horrible." She growled at him before the last words came out. She walked off hard before turning her head.

"Why don't you go and ask our dear parents? They will probably comfort you." She had emphasized the word "you".

--

_"What did she mean?" _He stopped when a buzzer sounded. He walked automatically out with the others following him. Omnivee was jumping as they came out to the giant arena where the rest of the matches would happen. The place was packed with people cheering as both trainers came in on opposite sides. Raz and the others went to the benches where Nami and Spark were already sitting.

"Shouldn't you 2 be in the center?" The couple looked up as the boy sat next to them.

"Naw, we always sit on Zi's side. Ever since he started showing such progress as a trainer, we said we would be with him. Sara hasn't ever said anything, so we assume she didn't ever mind. It is hard to watch 2 people you want to succeed fighting for the next spot. It's starting, let's watch."

The ref was in the center and dropped the flags. Zion pulled out a ball and released Gyarados without speaking. Everyone on the seats behind him became worried by the normally animated boy. Sara pulled out a ball, as Kirlia heard her thoughts to try and make sense of it all.

_"Big surprise their on his side. I make it here before he even comes close and they still don't notice. I'll show them I can shine as brightly as him, and then I'll take my light farther." _A growl escaped her as she threw a ball, and a Torkoal touched down. "Body Slam!"

The smoking fire-turtle charged the sea monster and slammed into him hard. Gyarados shrugged it off, but regained himself slower then he had in the past.

"Your poke has some power sis, I'm impressed. But you still have a type disadvantage. Let's go with Aqua Tail!"

The tail of Gyarados began glowing, and he started flying at the opponent. He swung around hard, but the attack connected with something else. They saw that Torkoal had produced a shield before the hit connected, protecting himself. The serpent flew back as his target lunged at him.

Sara became angry as a sudden roar came from here. Zi could have sworn he saw sparks and a red aura around her, but he was too far away to tell. She pulled out a ball and recalled the turtle who looked confused. He was quickly replaced as another ball was thrown, and her Charizard touched down.

"Charm, destroy that thing!" She screamed at her poke, who echoed her anger and flew at Gyarados without another thought. She caught the serpent and flew high into the air with him. She started flying in a circle before flying down at a speed that blurred the 2 and then slammed the dazed foe into the ground, knocking him completely out.

"AGAIN!" The dragon-like poke looked at her with a bewildered expression before picking Gyarados up and flying high into the air again. As they made their speedy decent, Zion managed to recall him just before the slam.

"What was that about?! He was out after the first attack! That might have killed him!" He looked down at Omnivee and nudged her forward. She took off and didn't wait for an attack to be called.

She was on the back of Charm as she touched back down and released a strong Thunder Bolt straight on the poke. After the attack finished, the Fire poke looked at the one on her back and flew high into the air. She flew higher then before and started making the circles faster. Omnivee lost her grip as the circles made her dizzy, and she fell off.

"Don't!" Sara yelled up as Charm took off to catch the little poke so she wouldn't be too hurt to survive. The poke ignored her and grabbed hold of the opponent before she slowed and let the little one down.

"I gave you and order! Are you turning on me like they did? Why did you desert me?!" Sara fell to her knees and clutched her head as tears started. The ref jumped off and ran to the announcer. They knew he had called the match and Zion would be given the victory before he was even halfway across the field.

Zion jumped off his spot, but took off as fast as possible to the now his sister, who was now weeping hysterically. Kira, Kirlia, and Rayne were behind him quickly. Raz watched as the twin's parents made no movement to go to their daughter. They were talking to each other happily as Zi was announced the winner.

"To think, I respected you 2." They looked up to see the boy staring angrily at them. He had his fists clenched as they looked at him with surprise. "It all made sense when she talked about her Charizard abandoning her also. I grew up with those 2, and I remember certain things clearly now. You made it to anything Zion was into. When he was on the youth swim team, you made it to every meeting and cheered him on. When he wanted to make the pool bigger, you let him expand it to more then triple the size.

"I was there for all that also, but me and Zi also made it to all of Sara's karate tournaments while you both worked. We were there and helped her paint her room when she decided princesses weren't cool enough and we all covered her walls with flames. You punished her for it, but me and Zi got off free. Your the reason for this happening. I finally understand why she went with Ian even though she never even liked him in any way. It was because he paid attention to her and even praised her for doing good."

They looked at him for a few seconds as he turned and raced to the others. Zi was already at her side as she curled into a ball and continued. When the others got there, she was so far gone, she didn't speak as Raz helped her brother pick her up. They walked out with her without another look at the crowd. They took her to an empty room and set her on a couch with her head laying on Zion's lap as Kirlia used Hypnosis to help her sleep off some of it.

_"She has so much anger. It's mostly toward Nami and Spark. What happened to her growing up?" _She looked up as Raz tapped his head for her to read. The past the boy had with the twins laid itself out in front of her, and she began crying from all the neglect she witnessed. Kira held the poke as Rayne and Raz sat across from the twins.

After some time, Nami and Spark entered, but were thrown out by Zion as Kirlia replayed what she had seen to all of them. Kira was crying as the motherly woman had entered. It was hard for her to view this woman in a negative way. Rayne ignored when her name was called. A few hours later, Raz did the same. The announcer came on soon after since Raz was supposed to have the last match.

"Ladies and gentlemen, due to some recent events, the matches of Razal Psychosi against Xisin Danielson and that of Rayne Kasia against Leon Dyna have been postponed until tomorrow. Today we have 2 people that are going to the semi-finals. The matches tomorrow will decide who will face against the 2 that have been victorious today. Let's give it up for the winners Zion Hightide and Ian Monopolous."

The crowd cheered half-heartedly as they began leaving the stands. The group watched Sara without thinking about the crowd or anything else. If she wasn't better tomorrow at least, they would ignore it again. Raz said it best when a knock had a reporter at the door. He was asked why they had refused to go and have their matches. He didn't know that the girl had woken up and was listening with her eyes shut.

"You don't leave a friend that needs you for any reason." He shut the door in the cameras face and sat back down with a book when he heard another knock. He was surprised when he answered and 2 trainers were standing there. He noticed the bouncing girl Kara who was in front.

"Is your friend ok? We came to see since it must have been bad for you to skip out on a match. Can we come in?" The rest heard this and laughed as the hopping girl slid past him and went to the girls side and stared at her. Raz moved as the other trainer entered. He recognized Leon as he went to stand next to Rayne behind the couch the twins were on.

"She looks better then when she was on the monitor during your match. I'm gonna poke her." She pointed a finger at the girl and came close to her forehead. The others jumped as Sara grabbed the girl's hand before she made contact, but Kara was bouncing. "Knew you were awake. Your breathing was too uneven."

"Why are you all here?" She opened her eyes and looked around. All the people were smiling as her voice was calm and even. She even had the start of a smile on the edge of her mouth.

"Because we're your friends." She looked up to see Raz sitting down on the couch next to Kira. "You feeling a little better?"

"Not really. I'm actually feeling a lot better, but I don't know why. She looked around and saw Kirlia in the corner meditating. The Psychic nodded as a question formed in the girl's mind.

"She just wants to keep things calm while we talk." This time it was Zion who spoke, making Sara realize she was laying on him. Kara sat next to the girl as she raised up. "I know you hate me, but please listen. Had I realized how mom and dad were, I would have defended you more. I know Raz feels the same.

"We both realize we never were the best of friends with you, but we're gonna make up for it now. From this point forward, we will do whatever it takes to make up for the past." She looked over as Raz nodded. Kira looked at her also.

"I may not know you well, but I'll try and help them as well."

"Me too." Rayne leaned over the couch and put her head on Zi's shoulder.

"Your wrong you know." They looked as tears started down Sara's face, but she was smiling. "I never hated you. You both were there for me when our parents weren't. Why would I hate you for not doing something when you were too young to see it? You did your best already. I was the one who was horrible to you. I-" She cut off as Zion hugged her. More tears flowed.

"Stop it. We all made mistakes, but we are only human." Both Raz and Kira laughed as he said it. "Or at least we're all mostly human. No more of this though. Your with us now, and we'll always be there for you." She looked around as the others stood up and walked to her. "We just have 1 thing to take care of first." He pushed her up and she was instantly caught as the 3 hugged around her.

"Aw, isn't it sweet. A family reunited." Kara was jumping and giggling as she pulled out a camera. Leon just laughed and stayed in his spot behind the couch.

"I'm gonna regret this aren't I?" Sara looked to see Zion as they let go of her.

"Every minute of it."

--

"And with a narrow win, Razal moves on to the next round where all the teams Pokemon will be used. The matches for tomorrow's semi-final matches will be first with Rayne Kasia against Zion Hightide. The second will be one for the books as Ian Monopolous faces against Razal Psychosi with the winners going on to the final match. See you tomorrow when we gather for 2 great matches."

Raz turned as he stepped off the platform. Kira jumped up and hugged him as he caught her. The others just laughed. Zion looked at Rayne before moving to a battle stance.

"I won't be a push-over tomorrow. You better be ready." She watched as Sara smacked him.

"Your the one that should be ready. You know your not gonna be able to win if you don't get into the right mind-frame. She continued to lecture him as he ignored her. He showed how much attention he was paying when he walked behind her and started braiding her long and straightened, now uncolored, sapphire blue hair. She just sighed and started walking away with the others as he continued. The others laughed as she repeated his words from the day before.

"Every minute of it."

--

--

A/N: The past is revealed and a new member has joined the team. Now the question is how can Nami and Spark gain forgivness for their mistakes? They know now what they did, but can they make up for it? I don't know, I just write this stuff. Watch as the tournament heats up with Raz scrambling for a 6th partner before his most desired match as the semi-finals start. See ya soon.


	33. Battle of Brothers

"Told you ice-cream was a good breakfast food." Kara took another big bite of a sundae after beating Zion in an argument about whether cake or ice-cream was better for a breakfast food. Both Kara and Leon had been hanging out with the group since they came to see about Sara 2 nights ago.

"How are you so happy after losing out of the tournament?" Raz watched as the little girl kept bouncing with every bite.

"It doesn't bother me to lose at something like this. I'm more into coordinating then the whole gym thing. They really need contests here."

"I don't mind losing as long as it was to a good opponent. Rayne beat me in a great match. Besides, we've been through the Sinnoh league before this. Losses don't matter as much as what you do after them." Leon picked at a piece of toast as Raz nodded at his words.

"True. So what's your plans after your done here?"

"We were thinking about taking a break and then head to Johto. They supposedly have some great contests there, and I want to face a gym leader there that's supposedly trained with Lance. It sounds like a fun match. We'll see you guys finish here though. I wanna see that punk Ian go down. He was so cruel when he beat Kara." They looked at the girl who was eagerly starting on her 3rd sundae.

"How do you not get brain-freeze?" Sara was staring as the girl shoveled it in. She just shrugged and continued eating. Raz stood at that point and stretched backwards.

"Well, I got something to take care of. I'll see you guys at the tournament arena." He bent down and kissed Kira before walking toward the door. Leon stood quickly.

"Mind if I join ya?" Raz turned and smiled.

"Sure. Maybe you can help me find a good one." The boys left as the rest watched Zion and Kara begin racing to eat more of their respected foods then the other.

--

"So what are we looking for?" Leon noticed they had walked quite a ways from the plateau and were deep in the woods around them.

"I don't have a 6th member, so I need to find one for the match. I have a Kirlia, Grim, Articuno, Bellossom, and Crobat. They cover most bases, but I need something to keep from getting disqualified." They continued walking and looking in most directions for Pokemon. After an hour, they started heading back. It wasn't until Leon gasped that they saw something.

"Look at that."

"Nice."

--

"Aqua Tail!" Gyarados flew in and hit Rath with a hard shot from his glowing tail. The dog rolled and stopped just in front of Rayne.

"And with a powerful Aqua Tail, Zion takes the advantage with 2 Pokemon remaining. What will Rayne pull as her last shot to win?"

Rayne looked at the ball in her hand. With a quick flick of her wrist, Riolu came out and stared at the giant serpent. She smiled when the opposing poke turned and looked back at Zion. The boy sighed as he pulled out the ball.

"That's a dirty trick. Return Gyarados. We quit." He turned and jumped off the platform as Rayne picked up her little poke and hugged him. When she rejoined the others, Zion was as happy as normal. He even smiled as she approached, so eh guessed it was all forgiven.

They were listening as the announcer called for Raz and Ian to take there places. They had 20 minutes to get there, but the group had 1 problem as they went out and sat where Raz would stand. Sara looked at them after they sat.

"Where's Raz and Leon at?" The group all looked worried as they hadn't seen them since they left 4 hours earlier. Ian was standing in his position, waiting as the timer ticked down.

--

"We still haven't heard from Razal Psychosi, and it looks like the match is gonna go to Ian Monopolous as the last minute is halfway done."

The crowd watched as the timer went down to 10 seconds. Kirlia stood and went to the spot Raz would be standing at. The group watched as she got up there and turned to the clock. When it hit 3 seconds, the timer stopped. Leon walked in with Raz's arm on his shoulder. They walked past everyone and up to the platform as the crowd cheered.

"What happened?" Kara was looking at marks on Leon as he came and sat next to her after helping Raz up to his spot.

"You'll see. We meant to be here sooner, but his Pokemon had to be healed as much as possible before he could make it. We did our job though and he got a 6th for the match. Just watch and see who it is." He leaned back as medical personnel came and checked both of the young men out. When Raz sent them away, the ref got into position and lowered the flags.

"Time to take you out Rasputin. Go Magmortar." the ball flew out and the evolved form of Magmar bellowed a roar out. Raz pulled out a ball and looked at it for a minute.

"It took a lot to catch this, and you give it a good opponent to go out against. Let's see how you do, Tyranitar." As the poke enter, he released a roar that kicked sand up and swirled it around the arena. Magmortar flinched as the sand cut into him and hurt his eyes.

"Use Sunny Day and get this sand to stop." Ian ordered with an angry edge to his voice. The poke shot a ball of light into the sky that heated the arena quickly. As the sand stopped, he looked up to see Tyranitar in his face. The poke screamed as the opponent bit him hard and swung around, tossing the fiery poke across the field. The group watched as Raz's new partner charged before the foe was up and slammed into him.

"Now use Earthquake while he's on the ground." The poke listened and stomped hard, causing the arena to shake as sharp rocks came up and hit Magmortar hard as he stayed laying on the ground. He made no effort to when the quake ended and Tyranitar was declared the winner of the bout.

"What a waste you were." Ian recalled the poke before throwing the ball to the side. "This one cost a little more to train, so she should be able to beat that freak. Go Froslass." A new ball flew up and the ice ghost was released with a giggle. She looked at the opponent before shooting an Ice Beam and catching him at the legs.

"ROAR!" The poke tried to lift his legs, but they wouldn't budge as another beam froze more of his body. Raz saw the pain in Tyranitar and recalled him before the rest of his body was frozen.

"And with that move, Ian has evened the odds with 5 Pokemon each. Who will Razal pull out now?" The crowd watched as Grim burst out roaring. He stared at the opponent and roared again. The roars were answered with a blast of the cold blue lightning. Grim opened his mouth and a burst of flame hit the blast, causing an explosion in the air between the 2.

"That dog of yours looks weak. This shouldn't be a hard win." Froslass shot another beam that again got answered with flames. While they continued to blast at each other, Kira noticed that part of Grim's body was taped up.

"What happened?" She looked at Leon who was watching the match intently.

"When we saw Tyranitar, he attacked us. He threw me down and slammed Raz into a tree. Grim popped out and jumped between them. He's managed to beat him down enough to be caught, but 2 of his ribs were broken in the process. Raz said he would just not go, but he was apparently threatened by the dog. He should be healed quite a bit now though. He'll be good as new with a few hours in the healing chamber tonight, so when he wins, his team will be perfect for tomorrow."

They noticed how he said when and not if Raz wins. Their attention went back to the match as the crowd gasped. When they turned, they saw Grim was laying on the ground, but Froslass was next to him an the ground as well. They looked up and saw a replay on the screen. Grim had charged in and shot a flame that caught the Ice Beam as it was fired. Both were caught in the blast.

"You did great." Raz recalled Grim.

"You were a waste." Ian recalled Froslass and threw the ball away where he had thrown Magmortar.

Both tossed out balls at the same time, and Bellossom came out against a massive Rhyperior. The giant rhino slammed his foot into the ground, causing it to crack and split beneath the dancing plant poke. She shook before falling into the narrow crack that held her up as her arms got stuck. She couldn't move as the opponent started charging. She instantly started releasing dust into the air above her. When the foe slammed into her, he became covered in it all. Raz recalled her quickly.

"You did good against someone that was a lot bigger and stronger. What you did is sure to help us out." He put the ball away as he tossed another one out. Articuno came out and called out beautifully as she flew into the air.

"Use Rock Tomb and get that bird back down here." Ian watched upward as he waited to see a boulder fly up at the bird. When nothing happened he looked at his poke and was shocked to see it standing still other then shaking.

"Stun Spore is a wonderful attack. Use Blizzard please." The bird flew down while snow started flying from behind her. She passed the opponent at an extreme speed, causing the snow and ice from her attack hit him that much harder. When the attack ended, she turned and shot an Ice Beam at the unseen foe. When it was all clear to see, the crowd roared. Rhyperior was in a solid block of ice that would take a while to melt.

"Why are you all so worthless?" Ian recalled the poke, pulling it from the block, and discarded the ball like the ones before. He looked at his 3 remaining balls and smirked as he picked one. "Time to bring it home." The ball released a black Charizard. Flame bellowed as he roared at the legend. She dodged and fired ice back.

They continued firing back and forth, both dodging the other. Charizard started flying and the battle became too close for either to blast the other. They did everything they could during it with her pecking and scratching as he punched and bit. He managed, after a few good hits, to grab his arms around her wings and close them in on her. He began spinning like a top as they began a dive straight down. He pulled out at the last second, but Articuno was released and slammed into the ground hard.

"About time someone did anything useful. Flamethrower and get rid of that waste." A flame escaped the mouth and shot for the unconscious poke. Raz recalled her before shouting across the field.

"What's the matter with you? She was beaten and you go for another attack. There's no chance your gonna win now! Let's end this Kirlia." The Psychic Pokemon leaped from his side and raced forward. She slammed into the black dragon hard and teleported with him around the arena. She stopped, leaped backward and fired a massive Psybeam that smashed the opponent into a wall. Everyone was stunned silent.

"Lucky shot. It won't happen again." He recalled Charizard and did as he had with the others, discarding the poke as useless. He threw out a ball that revealed a Gyarados that roared, before it was picked up and slammed into the ground 10 times quickly, knocking it out before a single move was called. Ian was even stunned as Raz chuckled and broke the silence.

"I told you there was no chance of you winning. You pissed Kirlia off by hurting the baby. She's barely controlling herself now, so let's end this." The little poke was snarling as the last pokeball was thrown. Venusaur came out and instantly started charging the Psychic. She leaped over and fired a Psybeam that propelled the poke into a wall. He recovered and roared as his back started glowing.

"Unleash it all Kirlia! Max power!" A red beam started forming in the little poke's hand. She was charging for as long as Venusaur was. The arena began to shake as they gathered more and more energy. Both stared at the other as the balls of energy became larger.

"FIRE!!" Both trainers called and the balls turned into beams of energy that collided in the air. Both pushed their powers to the max as the center and connecting point moved back and forth. Both Pokemon began to scoot backward and into the ground as they released everything into the blasts. The walls cracked as the center started growing larger, covering half the stage.

"Give up Rasputin. Your pathetic poke and you don't stand a chance. Your just a bunch a freaks that like to think they can do something." Ian laughed as Venusaur began winning the battle. The Solar Beam almost over-took the Psybeam before Raz spoke.

"Your wrong. We may be freaks as you say, but if that is so, then what are you? Ask anyone, we're more human then you will ever be. Besides, you fight for power. What a pathetic reason to fight. We have a real reason to fight and win, our friends!" Kirlia's beam changed from red to purple as he spoke, and shot straight through the center and slamming into the plant.

The arena calmed as the shaking stopped. The crowd looked down as all the dust and smoke cleared. On 1 side of the arena, Venusaur was laying on his side with leaves from his plant torn off and scattered around him. N the other, they watched as Kirlia stood for a few seconds before falling backwards. Raz limped over and picked her up. Kira came running out and helped him back to his spot as she took Kirlia from him.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle. The match is a draw." Ian began laughing as he recalled his last poke.

"I guess I stayed true to my word. You couldn't beat me." His laughing stopped as Raz started laughing herder then he was.

"Once again you prove yourself to be a complete idiot, just like the man you call father." He continued laughing as the crowd watched. Slowly, he reached back and threw a pokeball. The crowd roared with laughter at Ian's proclamation as Crobat burst forth. The ref held Raz's flag up and the crowd cheered. Crobat flew over and circled his partner as the boy fell back into a sitting position.

The others all stood and helped him back up. Zion and Leon put his arms across their shoulders as the girls followed them into the back, with Crobat flying around them and Kira carrying the sleeping Kirlia. Ian threw the last ball down and stormed off. The ref picked the balls up and put them in a case he started taking toward the judges.

--

"That was awesome man." Zion was still cheering the boy as they laid him on the medical table to be checked out. A Joy took all the Pokemon, except Kirlia and Crobat, and put them into a chamber that would heal them for the final match tomorrow. When they were done with Raz, his sides were taped up and a mechanic came in to fix his left leg. The others kept talking as the boy listened to them.

_"I finally did it. Take that old man." _He began laughing as the thought of his father's face flashed when he saw what had happened.

--

"Useless." Ian was up early in the morning and was standing outside the Poke-Center. He watched as a limo came up. The window lowered and he saw it was who had been waiting on. "Uncle, you got my message." The door opened and he entered as the car drove off.

"Of course. You said you wanted to have the power for revenge, correct?" The man looked at the boy with a sinister smile.

"I don't care what it takes. Can you make me strong enough to destroy Rasputin?" The man laughed as he saw the boys face.

"Of course we can, but you won't be near the same afterward. Are you fine with that." The boy nodded.

"I'll do whatever it takes. Make me powerful enough to kill him, Uncle Giovanni." The car raced off as the Indigo Plateau disappeared into the background.

--

--

A/N: That was fun. The tournament is coming to and end as the finals approach. Who will win the final battle between Raz and Rayne? Will her trick that beat Zion work again? Find out as the tournament comes to a close in the next chapter. See ya then.


	34. Final Match: A New Journey Awaits

"The time has come at last! This is the match for the championship people, as Razal Psychosi takes on Rayne Kasia. The trainers are now on the field and the match will begin shortly."

Raz looked out as the special ref came out. It was none other then the champion, Ash. He held the flags out and looked to each trainer. Rayne looked behind her as Zion cheered from her side with Omnivee. A quick look back showed Kira and Sara on his side. Both looked at the ref and nodded.

"Begin!" The final match was underway.

"Go Riolu!" The girl tossed the ball and released the dog-like poke. She laughed as her opponent made an odd face.

"Just try not to hurt him too much Kirlia." The little dancer hopped over the bar and landed down gently. She went off as she touched down and hit the foe with a Psybeam, sending the pup flying. He landed and stood looking dazed. He started growling as the Psychic disappeared and came closer. The anger took hold from being hit for the first time, and he started glowing.

Kirlia stopped and watched as Riolu disappeared, and a Lucario now stood in a fighting stance across from her. The new poke grinned before disappearing and tackling the stunned poke with Extreme Speed. She shrugged it off and went back to the offensive, teleporting and blasting the opponent.

He disappeared as she launched a powerful blast, and hit her from behind with a ball of focused energy. He had another charged as she turned and got hit in the face by it. She flew across the field and landed hard in front of Rayne. As she slowly got up, she wiped some blood off her forehead that had been cut by the attack. When she saw it, she disappeared and slammed her head into the foe.

He was dazed as she charged up and hit him with a focused Psybeam. He took the attack hard in the back, but still managed to get up. He started charging another Aura Sphere as he dodged her beam onslaught. He fired it and it was right in front as she fired a shot, causing an explosion in her face. She was knocked backward and landed near Raz, unconscious.

He jumped the rail and picked her up. He wiped more blood off her head as he gave her to Kira to take care of. He leaped back up and pulled out another ball. As he threw it, a roar burst forth. Tyranitar touched down and charged at the poke on the field. He dodged while Rayne began thinking.

_"Why would he use him? A Dark poke would fall easier to a Fighting type." _As she was preoccupied, she felt a quaking. The monster had slammed his foot hard into the ground and caused an Earthquake. Lucario narrowly dodged, but was caught in the air and slammed down. Tyranitar kicked him into the air and slammed him down another time before walking away from the knocked-out opponent.

"Pure strength is quite an asset to have. Too bad I have to break that muscle." She tossed a ball and Leafeon came out growling. The plant poke shot a ball of light up into the sky before dashing toward the monster opponent. He ran quick circles and began charging a Solar Beam. As the attack fired to the center, Tyranitar ducked down low and the attack missed him completely as he swung his tail around the circle.

As the hit Leafeon flew away, he fired another charge straight into the foe's face. The giant poke started swinging around as the attack had rendered him blind. He continued swinging into thin air as the plant poke started charging another beam. This one hit him in the chest and slammed him into the wall. He got back up, but was swinging the air again. Raz sighed and recalled the blinded poke.

"That was quite a way to take down my power-house, but how about my finesse?" He threw a ball up and Articuno came out calling beautifully. She flew high and locked onto the foe who was already charging another beam as he shot a Razor Leaf attack at the bird. She dove under the leaves and started glowing as she flew faster and faster toward the opponent.

The beam fired as she was too close to dodge and clipped her left wing, but she still caught the poke and sent him flying. As he landed, she began her assent, but was going at a much slower rate. Her wing had been hit hard and was bruised over a wide area. She made it half the hight as before, before she turned and flew down fast again. This time her beak was glowing as she pulled her wings in.

This time, the poke was hit much harder by the beak and fell a few feet from his trainer. She began pulling out his ball until he stood again. He growled and took off at the bird. He jumped on her back and began charging another Solar Beam. She wasn't able to shake him with her hurt wing and was hit by the blast hard. She was on her back and couldn't get up because of the pain between her wings. Raz recalled her with a surprised look.

"That's a pretty strong poke. Let's see how you do against him Crobat." The bat poke flew up just as the one before him had. His speed however was unrivaled as he quickly shot down and avoided Razor Leaf and Solar Beam attacks. He grabbed hold and bit the opponent hard on the neck. The plant felt a surge of pain as poison was injected into his system. He could hardly move as the bat carried him up before tossing him down into the dirt from an earlier explosion. This time he couldn't get up and was recalled back.

"Nice going. Let's see how your bat takes to a shocker. Go Luxio." Raz watched as the poke came out with a lion's roar.

"When did she evolve?"

"During my match with Zion. You should have seen his face." They laughed as the Pokemon began circling each other. Sparks flew out as Crobat spun around and dodged them all. The feline grew tired of it and jumped up, surprising the foe and clamping her teeth down. A few seconds after landing, sparks of electricity flowed through them and shocked the bat out of it. With little defense, the attack knocked him out as his body fell to the ground.

"Heh, this is an interesting match. Return Crobat. Let's see who I got left. How about Bellossom." He released the plant as she started dancing. Luxio stared at her and started growling. She took off and dodged around as powders were thrown into the air. She avoided them and tried to shoot Thunder Bolt at the poke, but the attack was grounded and did noting to the plant. She started charging and caught the unsuspecting opponent with a strong Solar Beam.

She got up and shook the attack off as she circled her again. She fired little balls of green energy at the poke now, causing her to have to jump and avoid both the attacks and the powders. Rayne watched and tried to see some weakness to this.

"The powder keeps her at a distance while she launches ranged attacks. A fire poke could beat her, but I don't want to do that unless it is really necessary. She can't move with the attack, but electricity does nothing to her. There must be a way." A thought struck her as the powder continued to fall.

"Luxio. Hit the powder with a Thunder Bolt." She shot a bolt that hit the powder and caused the charge to travel through it all. As the powder hit Bellossom, she became stunned from the charged parts and stopped moving. The powder soon stopped, and she was completely vulnerable to the cat. She walked around her as she tried to fight off the paralysis. Raz puled out her ball and recalled her before the opponent could attack.

"It would have been mean for me to just wait for her to be defeated when she couldn't move. I got one left, so let's see how many of your 4 he can take. Go Grim." The hound came out with a blood-chilling roar that made everyone except Raz and his side shiver. He stared at the cat who was jumping up and down at the sight of her friend. Rayne recalled the feline quickly.

"She wouldn't be able to fight with her full power against that dog. I do have someone that wants the shot at him at full power though. Go Rath." The dog came out and both started barking angrily at the other. They started shooting fireballs that exploded as they hit in the air. Grim released a Flamethrower and clipped the other dog's hind right leg. Rath did the same but missed entirely. They began circling as the barks continued.

Grim charged in and bit at the pup but caught nothing as the target swung around and mule-kicked him in the jaw, sending him backwards. He got up and began to build his strongest flame in his chest. Rath began doing the same as they stopped and glared at each other. The heat was incredible as the 2 fired their blasts at the opponent.

When the flames met in the air, the dogs were pushed back as they tried to push more power in their attacks to overtake the other. A ball of fire began growing in the center as the attacks continued. Their flames began licking the sides of the walls as people had to scoot away from it. Ash even jumped off the ref platform as the fire ate it.

With the attacks not moving, both Pokemon began to grow tired as their flame drained them to keep up. Grim thought and as inspiration hit, he blew the flames harder. His attack started changing as he moved into action. He began charging as much Dark energy as he could. When he had enough, he combined the 2 into 1 blast. The flame instantly turned from bright orange to black and took over quickly. The ball shifted as the darkness took it and it flew straight into the opposing dog.

When the dust settled, Grim was standing and panting hard while Rath was covered in charred fur on the ground. He was breathing slowly as the other dog came over and nudged him with his nose. Rayne recalled the poke after Grim walked away.

"Whoa. That was intense, but how much power can he possibly have left? I still have 2 poke's so the question is, can he hold out?" She pulled out another ball and Wingull came out. The bird looked at the dog and shot water at him quickly. He moved and began racing around the arena. His moves were slower then normal, but he managed to get a clear shot on the bird.

"Never count a good dog down." Raz watched as the fireball hit Wingull and dropped the untrained bird hard. Rayne recalled him and pulled out her last ball.

"Time for my power-house. Let's go for gold Aggron." The giant poke came out and stared at the weakened dog. She jumped up and caused an Earthquake as she slammed into the ground. Grim was so tire he couldn't avoid it and was dropped down from the attack. He stood back up when it ended and fired a ball of fire at the foe. The attack hit and caused her to roar in pain.

She leaped up and started rolling as her body hit the ground, sending her flying toward Grim who was still too tired after running to hit the last opponent. The Rollout caught him dead-center and knocked him across the arena and into a wall. He stood back up slowly, but his breathes became ragged. He tried to move but began coughing as his body moved his chest the slightest bit.

Raz jumped down as he saw blood fly from his poke's mouth. Nurse Joy's also came running with a stretcher. Grim fell over as Raz reassured him that he did better then anyone else had. Ash held up the flag as Rayne recalled Aggron and ran with Zion and Omnivee toward their friend. He turned and smiled.

"He'll be alright. Congrats, it was a match for the books." He held out his hand as the 2 appeared on the monitors. Everyone watched as Rayne shook it and held both their arms up. The crowd roared as they turned and he pointed at her. After a few turns, the boys hoisted her up as balloons and confetti fell. Kira and Sara joined them with Kirlia right behind, her head bandaged as well as her chest. The crowd continued cheering as Ash stepped up and walked toward them.

"You've won the tournament and have gained the right to challenge me for the championship. What do you say?' She hopped down and looked at her friends who were smiling.

"I don't think so. I want to be champion one day, but I want to see the world with my friends first." They shook hands as he held hers up as Raz had done earlier. The celebrations continued well through the night. Raz had checked on Grim and was told he was in a rejuvenation chamber and would have to take it easy for the next few weeks. He thanked her and went back out to the others as fireworks flew high into the sky.

"What's next for us?" Zion looked up to Raz as he rejoined them at a bar-b-q area. He just shrugged at the boy as he sat next to Kira.

"I don't know about you, but I'm ready to sleep for a week or so. It made me feel a lot better last time." He laughed as Kira elbowed his side, making him wince as she hit his ribs.

"That isn't funny. You know how worried I was during that." He pulled her pouting face up and looked into her eyes.

"I know. Can you forgive my stupid joke?" He was half smirking, knowing she was already giving in.

"I guess." He pulled her up and kissed her before she could change her mind, making the others giggle.

--

"It's been 3 weeks. Let's go do something." Zion had been whining to go ever since they got back to Pallet. They were in the Hightide estate living room at this outburst and all of them looked annoyed at him. They had been at Oak's for the first week, but Raz convinced the twins to go make-up with their parents.

"You only have one pair. Besides, parents are supposed to screw their kids up. Mine did me, and see how great I turned out." The talk with Nami and Spark had happened quickly and now the twins and Rayne were staying there. Kira had decided to stay at Oak's so he could examine her and Raz to better understand the technology that made their parts.

"For the last time, shut up. Your giving me a headache." Raz laid across the couch with his head on Kira's lap. Rayne was up and getting their lunch prepared with Sara helping her. Nami and Spark had left to go on business for a few days.

"Whose ready for some pasta and 3 cheese sauce?" The girls opened the door as Grim ran out with Luxio, Omnivee, and Rath chasing him. The quartet had been sticking together ever since they arrived. The 3 had sat with Grim when he couldn't move around a lot in the beginning and had been playing together ever since. Raz raised as Kira got up and awoke Kirlia who was asleep in a chair next to them.

"I'll be right back. Gonna check the mail." Raz stepped out and jogged down to the mail box. As he pulled the letters out, he notice 5 identical cards for him, Kira, Zion, Rayne, and Sara. He turned the one for him over and read quickly. As he finished, he sprinted up to the house. The other looked startled as he burst through the kitchen doors and smiled widely at them.

"Pack your bags. Tomorrow, we leave for Johto." He held up the cards which had big bold print on the back. Each was the same as they looked at them.

**You have been invited to take part in the Johto League, including both gym battles and contests.**

He looked at each as they got the same expression he had had when he read his. The expression that said one thing.

"Let's do this thing."

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A/N: I want to thank everyone who has read and reviewed this story. It was my first fic, but definitely not my last. Keep your eyes peeled as the sequel is now in the works to follow their journey through Johto, and who knows what will come after that. Remember to watch out as I thank you again.

Coming Soon: The Razal Effect 2: Altered Memories


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